Ballistics Research of Common Building Materials
Challenge
Active shooter events are a growing trend in the United States according to recent FBI data. Most of these events occur in offices or schools constructed with common building materials such as wood, brick, and concrete masonry. Additionally, the interiors of these spaces are filled with items such as desks, chairs, filing cabinets, and bookshelves. Most of these facilities will never have the resources to install specialty ballistic products to protect occupants. However, some existing products may provide some level of protection from these threats either as is or with a small degree of modification. ARA wants to know the answer.
Solution
ARA is researching the impact of ballistic threats on these materials to determine to what degree, if any, these materials provide protection and how may they be affordably improved to increase the level of protection.
