The preferred port of entry for most uninvited intruders is straight through the door.

The standard office or house door is worryingly easy to break open with a minimal amount of force fragmenting the door structure. An aggressively applied shoulder or sharp kick can knock your door off its already weak hinges. This can and often does encourage even the most unskilled and unprepared thief to break and enter.

Blast- and bullet-resistant security doors represent a crucial investment in commercial, industrial, and even domestic settings. By selecting  physical security solutions, property owners benefit from the highest level of performance in architectural safety and security. These reinforced products are designed to absorb impact forces well in excess of those typically associated with manual forced entry. The added-value of this goes far beyond mere peace of mind.

Churches, mosques, synagogues, and temples play an ever-important role in our communities, bringing like-minded people of various faiths together to environments where they can safely practice their religion. Unfortunately, that spirit of openness leaves clergymen and congregations vulnerable to extreme opportunists. There is also the constant risk of violent, anti-religious activity too, which can occur in any number of guises.

Security has always been a concern for architectural designers and project managers, but the nature of the threats that we face in both private and public spaces is changing rapidly. This has mandated a wide-scale reconsideration of how we protect ourselves at home, at work, or in any of the places where we may be vulnerable to firearms-related offenses.

Building safer schools with the right infrastructure and physical resources to respond to extreme security threats is a key priority for school districts across the US. Since 2013, there have been at least 575 recorded incidents of gunfire on school grounds. The past decade has sadly been one of the most lethal on record with respect to school shootings, leading to 212 deaths in just seven years. Shoring up our school security practices is crucial if we want to stem the tide of gun violence on campuses through 2020 and beyond.

Keeping up with the changing state of security is a key ongoing goal in every market. Unfortunately, the threats that businesses and individuals face are evolving every day. While many industries are currently focussed on digital threats and data security, the danger of real-world physical crimes remains a true risk factor for premises across the US.

Integrated security solutions are increasingly commonplace in churches, mosques, synagogues, and temples. These houses of worship are the linchpins that hold religious communities together. They are central to how billions of people worldwide practice their faith, providing locations for like-minded individuals to congregate and share in the acts of worship. Unfortunately, that sense of harmony is increasingly under threat: 2019 was one of the worst years on record for attacks on religious communities and houses of worship.

Weaponry and defense are intrinsically-linked, with innovations in one inevitably being trailed by developments in the other. Improved firearms revolutionized military attire as armies the world over fought to protect soldiers and vehicles with ballistic-grade armor plates and textiles. Their success subsequently led to the development of high caliber armor-piercing ammunition – and so on.

School security is a key growth market for developers and manufacturers of bulletproof products across the US. According to research carried out by IHS Markit, demand for bulletproofing in schools propelled the industry to a $2.7 billion valuation in 2017. This data considers a range of campus security solutions, from video surveillance and on-site metal detectors to ballistic-resistant windows and doors.

Bullet-resistant glass is an increasingly attractive prospect from an investment perspective, providing a range of tangible benefits beyond merely the obvious. This is reflected by significant growth in the market. According to a recent report, the bullet-resistant glass industry is expected to almost double in value by 2023, from a current worth of US$4.5 billion to approximately US$9.8 billion by 2023. There is no single answer as to why the market is experiencing such a significant uptick. National property and violent crime statistics are trending downwards over a 10-year period, so it is not simply an issue of supply and demand.