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anchorage and craftsmanship. These teams work closely with project designers, consultants, and engineers to create safe spaces that help protect building occupants and anyone nearby.
Step Three: Security Criteria and International Standards. Today the design process for most government and military structures must take blast demands into account. More and more, the education sector is also considering them. In addition to assessment and testing, architects are required to specify products that meet certain government and international standards. While no criteria or testing methods can promise total protection from explosions, government agencies designed these standards to consider the effects of explosive events on their facilities and offer steps to mitigate the extent or probability of damage.
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Three common standards are: • Security criteria by the Interagency Security Committee (ISC) and the General Services Administration (GSA), both based in Washington. Initially established to address glazing in all federal buildings after the bombing of the A.P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, the GSA security criteria resulted in the increased use of blast-resistant fenestration products in federal courthouses and similar government buildings. The ISC took it further by developing its own security criteria, which were approved for use in all new GSA buildings and major renovation projects. These criteria, intended to reduce potential hazards, require that windows be designed to mitigate the risk from fl ying glass fragments in the case of an explosion. These measures were designed with the understanding that not all fenestration products will survive a blast. • ASTM International Standards: Similar to the ISC/GSA performance, West Conshohocken, PA-based ASTM International’s ASTM F 1642-04 Standard Test Method for Glazing and Glazing Systems Subject to Airblast Loading establishes a testing method that evaluates levels of protection. These criteria require that glazed-window products meet performance levels that correspond to specifi c levels of protection. • Department of Defense (DoD): The Department of Defense, Washington, developed a blast-mitigation standard to minimize hazards caused by glazing to personnel. Know as the Unifi ed Facilities Criteria (UFC)-DoD Minimum Antiterrorism Standard for Buildings, the standard applies to windows, skylights, and glazed doors on new and existing inhabited buildings. In February 2012, the UFC 4-010-01 was revised with several signifi cant changes. These include expanding the applicability of the minimum antiterrorism standards to the purchase of existing buildings, visitor centers, museums and visitor-control centers and expanding the requirements for design submittals, calculations, test reports, and narratives.
Additionally, the revised standard redefi ned conventional-construction standoff distance based on the type of construction materials and structural systems, which enables a project team to evaluate the resistance and strength of the structure with the standoff distances at a given site. Other modifi cations to the standard affect the requirements for unobstructed spaces and identifying required access control at building entrances.
Step Four: Whole-Building Solutions. Anyone evaluating products for blast mitigation must think about the building as a whole. Windows, curtain walls, storefront framing, and entrances are all tested for blast
Windows such as the 8400TL single-hung windows from Kawneer, shown on Converse Hall at James Madison Univ., Harrisonburg, VA, can provide
blast resistance. Photo by Gordon Schenck, Jr.
mitigation to ensure a safe building envelope. A comprehensive building solution is critical for optimum protection.
A great deal can be accomplished with today’s glass and systems technology. As products are evaluated for blast mitigation, it is important to consider what other safety, sustainability, and overall occupant comfort features they may also have.
When specifying products for schools, for example, daylighting and thermal performance are often considerations right along with safety. Many studies over the years indicate that natural daylight stimulates the brain more than artifi cial light. The same studies suggest that student performance increases where more direct daylighting is used. Natural ventilation and emergency egress are two more factors that architects have to consider when designing schools and educational facilities.
The combination of aesthetics, functionality, code requirements, and simple logic plays a major role in an architect’s desire to use glazed entrances, storefronts, curtain walls, and operable windows. However, some are suggesting that schools or government facilities should be windowless or have fewer glazed openings to be safe.
Plans put into practice
Government and federal facilities identify security as a top priority and often consider whole-building solutions. One such example is the Sarasota Police Headquarters in Sarasota, FL. When architects from Winter Park, FL-based Architect Design Group Inc. were developing the six-story, $38-million building they designed a facility that would achieve high energy performance and daylighting while delivering security against natural and manmade threats, balancing sustainability and security. The harsh Florida environment and hurricane-prone location was another major reason designers considered a comprehensive building solution.
The building contains more than 40,000 sq. ft. of exterior glass and 6,000 sq. ft. of interior glass. The exterior of the building features an impact-resistant curtain wall with insulating, laminated, low-e, impact-rated glass as well as impact-resistant entrances. A high-performance framing system used on the interior and several doors provides strength and durability. The design also allows ample daylight, which is important in public or government facilities where people often spend a great deal of time indoors.
The police headquarters achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certifi cation from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Washington. By selecting products that achieved performance, safety, and aesthetic goals, the design team was able to provide occupants with a secure facility as well as energy and daylighting benefi ts, which contribute to overall occupant comfort.
The human element
Buildings can affect their occupants by enhancing moods, affecting health and productivity, and protecting them from natural or manmade disasters. Each product in a building plays a role in the overall infl uence on its occupants.
Incorporating any element into a building requires careful consideration, but when it comes to blast mitigation designed to safeguard human lives, thorough assessments, attention to regulations, and whole-building consideration are key elements in specifi cations. Protecting what’s inside is critical and selecting products with the highest levels of performance and defense help accomplish this objective. After all, it’s what–and who–is inside that matters most.
Donnie Hunter currently serves as the architectural manager for Kawneer North America, Norcross, GA.
