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What are Blast Doors?

This guide will explain what blast doors are, what they’re typically used for, why they’re important, and will help you understand their ratings.

Blast protection is essential in buildings that are at risk of intentional blast attacks such as terrorist attacks, or accidental blasts such as petrochemical accidents.

A securely closed blast resistant door will provide vital protection to life, infrastructure, and assets. It is important for people to understand about blast doors so that they can incorporate them into their health and safety procedures. Blast attacks can have a tremendous impact on staff, building, business, and need to be fully understood before installed.

What are Blast Doors Made From?

Blast resistant doors can be manufactured from a variety of materials, such as aluminium, concrete and timber. However, for high-level blasts, it is best to use steel.

Steel has three times the tensile strength of aluminium.
It is more resistant to expansion, as it bends into the building and absorbs the pressure. Thus, providing longer durability and minimising hazards.
Incorporates fire resistant qualities; it has a low transfer of heat, and a high melting point.
Can sustain a particularly high level of pressure waves.

Blast doors are typically designed bespoke, depending on the building and environment. However, they can be very discreet and often blend with the building and architecture. This makes their purpose less obvious, and most of the time unknown to the average person, which is a benefit to many businesses, who do not want their purpose known.

What are the Effects of a Blast Attack?

Many people don’t realise that not only does the actual explosion cause significant damage, but a pressure wave is produced, which can affect the entire area surrounding the targeted building.

As a result, substantial damage can be caused in areas that do not have blast resistant units installed. Shattered glass and debris from windows and doors can pose a significant threat to life.

According to the Government authority, the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastrucutre (CPNI), up to 95% of all injuries resulting from bomb blasts are caused by flying and falling glass.

Understanding Blast Level Requirements

It is unlikely that you would have to choose the blast level requirements yourself. However, it is still important to understand what the blast levels are and what they mean. The range of levels will each have a different impact on the building and people inside. This may change your health and safety plan, entry and exit points, and business.

You may believe that the level of blast resistance depends on the proximity of the blast. However, there are many factors that are considered, such as the type of blast likely to happen, whether terrorist or accidental. The type of building and whether it’s in a densely-populated area or not also affects the level. The time it needs to withstand an attack is a big factor as well, amongst many other contributors.

An external assessment should be undertaken to establish the threat posed to the building and environment. A government approved agency or a member of the Register of Security Engineers and Specialists (RSES) (who usually work for reliable blast door manufacturers) can advise to ensure the correct level of protection if offered.

Understanding Blast Standards

All blast doors are certified to a standard. Not all companies offer all of the standards, as it requires a significant amount of time and money to design and test blast doors to all standards. It is therefore important to understand what the different blast standards mean and how they can affect you.

Blast doors need to be tested to determine their performance level under blast load conditions. There are many standards depending on different country’s testing regulations, the time the door withstands, structural damage, glazing, hazards and so much more.

Ratings tend to fall into categories under ASTM, GSA, PIP, DMG, CPN, UFC and ISO.

Speak to your blast door manufacturer to understand more about the standard that is being used on your project.

Typical Applications

Blast doors tend to be used in areas where there is a potential risk of intentional and accidental blast attacks. These typically include: