The demand for blast-resistant glazing continues to grow as terrorist threats increase, and mandates from the GSA and the U.S. Departments of Defense and State require the installation of blast-resistant glazing on government facilities. Blast-resistant glazing minimizes the hazards of flying glass and wall debris.
Requirements are now set for courthouses, prisons, embassies, military hospitals and federal office complexes to have blast-resistant design. Airports, commercial sectors and residential sectors are also now incorporating blast-mitigation technologies. Blast-resistant technology actually saved many lives during the September 11 attack on the Pentagon.
About 75% of all damage and injury from bomb blasts occurs because of flying and falling glass after the explosion. Now there is a growing trend among government facilities to combine both fire-resistant properties and blast-resistant glazing. Currently, the US Department of Defense is now employing high performance glazed technology. In addition, an organization called SAFTI FIRST has new projects for fire-resistive and blast-resistive assemblies on the VA Primary Care Annex in Tampa, FL and the Public Safety Answering Center II (PSAC) in New York, NY.
It is best to find an appropriate glazing hazard mitigation system to safeguard the protection of facilities and lives during the design phase of the project’s construction. In this way, the aesthetic and performance objectives of a project can be on time and on budget.
