The world of blast protection has been rapidly expanding and there are now numerous products and approaches to provide protection from attacks. Where there used to be two solutions, there may now be twenty. It is important for owners, and security and design professionals understand how to select products appropriate for their project.
This article addresses mitigation for explosions.
For explosions, the most fragile and vulnerable elements make up the façade of the building: walls, windows, doors, louvers, etc. These elements are most often not critical for the structural integrity of the building (unless the façade consists of load-bearing walls), but they can represent significant hazards to occupants in the event of an explosion. For very large or close-in exterior or interior explosions, the structure of the building can be damaged as well.
The process of specifying blast resistant products can be simplified into 6 basic steps.
The following narrative provides a very brief description of each step.
Step 1: Is Blast Design Required?
While security consultants and blast engineers can make recommendations on this subject, it is the owner who must make the final determination. Project types that may require blast protection include:
The types of threats to be considered in the design should also be identified at this juncture. This includes the delivery methods (vehicle, backpack, package, etc.). These delivery methods – will help establish the locations of the threats.
Step 2: Identify Vulnerable Elements
Based on the types and locations of the blast threats, the vulnerable building elements can be identified. These elements may include:
Step 3: Develop Blast Design Criteria
For each type of building element, blast design criteria must be developed. The primary components of blast design criteria are:
Step 4: Identify Other Design Criteria
Other design requirements may be incompatible with certain approaches to blast resistance, and in other cases they may reduce the number of available products appropriate for a specific project. Other design criteria to consider may include:
Step 5: Supporting Structure Check
One of the critical things to remember when designing structures for blast resistance is that the individual building elements (e.g., door, window, wall, roof system) do not act alone. All building elements are supported in some manner, and those supportive systems must be able to withstand the blast loads transferred from the original building elements.
Step 6: Develop Specifications
Whether part of an overall construction document package or as a standalone document for one-off procurements, a well-written and complete specification is key to getting the proper blast resistant products. Specifications should include:
Stone Security Engineering (StoneSec) is an internationally recognized engineering consulting firm specializing in the protection of people, buildings, and structures from accidental and manmade hazards. We focus on Extreme Loading (including blast, ballistics, vehicle ramming, and forced entry resistance) and safety, engineering, and design. StoneSec has offices in New York City and the Washington DC Metro area and supports blast testing at the Stone-OBL Large-Scale Blast Test Facility outside of Bend, Oregon along with selected ballistic and forced entry testing programs at the OBL Forced Entry and Ballistics Testing facilities in Salem, Oregon.
We are looking for a Testing Manager who will be responsible for the successful, timely, and on-budget execution of blast testing programs at the Stone-OBL Large-Scale Blast Test Facility and other assigned extreme loading programs at the OBL Ballistics and Forced Entry Testing facilities. The Testing Manager will be supported by the technical and business development expertise of the blast/extreme loading and structural engineers of StoneSec.
We are looking for Testing Manager who is enthusiastic, hard-working, interested in working as part of a team, and who has an entrepreneurial spirit.
Required Qualifications
Preferred Qualifications
To apply, send your resume to [email protected].
Stone Security Engineering UFC 4-010-01 DoD Minimum Anti-Terrorism Standards for Buildings