Security top priority for engineers Published Aug. 21, 2009 By Howdy Stout Tinker Public Affairs TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- A pair of experts from the U.S. Army's Corps of Engineers recently presented a five-day class on security engineering to Tinker engineers, security forces and others in an effort to boost awareness on the role engineering and construction play in keeping military installations secure. The course is designed to give an overall perspective to engineers, architects and anyone involved in military installation safety and security. The class is taught by the Corps of Engineers' Protective Design Center, recognized as the leading U.S. military experts in security engineering. "It gets the engineers and security people on the same page as to what the requirements are," explained Jon Leathers, Plans and Programs, Anti-Terrorism office at Tinker. "That's the main thing." Although there are government criteria for the design and construction of security features at government facilities, the criteria is often misunderstood or misapplied, said Curt Betts, chief of security engineering at the Army's Protective Design Center. The goal of the course is to help those not necessarily familiar with building and construction make better choices to meet security design requirements. "We try to take heavy engineering information and distill it down so they can be effective consumers of engineering services," he said. The course, funded by Air Force Materiel Command, uses numerous case studies to illustrate how designs and structural improvements can protect new and existing buildings from damage by terrorist and other attacks. Information on types of explosives, weights and damage estimates are highlighted while design features, construction techniques and construction materials to mitigate blast damage are also explained. Mr. Leathers says the buildings and facilities at Tinker are annually assessed to rate their compliance with design regulations. Improvements are then ranked in priority and completed as funding allows. Much of the work currently being done at Tinker comes from stimulus package funding appropriated earlier this year. Although the funding was unanticipated, the projects were already planned and ready, allowing work to begin almost immediately. "Almost all of the work you see this year comes from the stimulus funds," he said. "We had projects ready to go thanks in part to great efforts by our 72nd Civil Engineering and 72nd Contracting Squadrons." One of the largest, long-term security projects at Tinker will be the installation of the Final Denial Barrier system at all of the base's five gates. The system involves barriers that can be deployed to stop unauthorized vehicles from forcing its way onto the installation. The barriers normally lie flush with the roadway but, with the push of a button by gate guards, can pop-up and stop vehicles, much like the arresting wire on an aircraft carrier. Installing the barrier system is expected to take 18 months, with individual gates being closed for up to 105 days. Only one gate at a time will be closed. "You're going to see a lot of work on the gates as we improve on their antiterrorism capabilities." said Mr. Leathers. Access control is an area of ongoing concern at military installations in the U.S. and abroad, Mr. Betts added. Designs, criteria and equipment are complex and installation at bases is "usually done wrong," he said. Systems like the barrier system require large amounts of room for installation, a particular challenge at older bases with closely-packed buildings or entrances. If the systems are incorrectly installed, Mr. Betts said, they pose a serious safety threat to those they are designed to protect. While members of the Army's design center team may spend up to 75 percent of their time on the road advising on projects and teaching security engineering techniques to various government agencies, Mr. Bett says many of those taking classes are already aware of the dangers posed to government facilities. "More often than not," he said, "someone in the class has seen some of what we're talking about."