Member Article

Sports stadia must stay on the ball

With the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro due to take centre stage in 2016, security of sports stadia should be a top priority for Governments, football clubs and other organisations says global security glazing specialist, Advanced Glass Technology (AGT).

In the wake of further global terror attacks, news has emerged that every single window at Old Trafford, home of Manchester United Football Club, is being covered in anti-shatter security film to protect thousands of spectators, staff and players, in the event of an explosion in or around the ground.

Media reports claim that the Club is taking the measures to ramp up its security even further, as a result of the terrorist atrocity in Paris last November. Work is underway to retrofit anti-shatter blast mitigation film, which AGT believes will take several weeks, given the size of the project.

The specialist security glazing business, which advises a number of embassies, non-governmental organisations and multi-national corporations in the UK, Middle East and Africa, is urging managers responsible for stadia security to review their existing protection levels.

Advances in security materials have made the process of installing anti-shatter blast mitigation film quicker and more cost-effective, which provides the optimum solution for any type of building, as Martin Westney, Managing Director, AGT, explains:

“Buildings with significant expanses of unprotected glass pose a dangerous risk to life in the event of a bomb blast. The resulting shock wave results in more than 1,800 glass fragments per square metre being accelerated across a huge radius, causing catastrophic destruction. With anti-shatter blast mitigation film in place, however, the glass breaks but all the pieces are contained, thereby protecting people in the vicinity, as demonstrated in our video.”

Guidance from the Home Office’s Centre for Applied Science and Technology (CAST) requires security film to achieve a specified adhesion to the glass at regular intervals after installation. This is essential to maintain the film’s ability to hold glass fragments together after a ballistic attack or bomb blast. According to AGT’s Martin Westney, film requires replacement after failing a ‘peel test’ or after a maximum of ten years:

“Security film acts as a protective skin on windows but as they are constantly exposed to sunlight, UV rays and also temperature fluctuations start to affect the efficacy of the adhesive over a prolonged period. In the UK, we specify that film should be replaced within ten years and tested by AGT at least every five years.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Advanced Glass Technology .