School security has become a concern in both new construction and retrofits

Elementary and secondary students arc reaching record numbers as the babies of baby boomers approach school age: The projected figure is 56 million by the year 2004. To cope with this exploding growth rate, the U.S. General Accounting Office recently estimated a need for major retrofit and repair work costing approximately $112 billion. This places a high priority on new school construction and the remodeling of aging schools.

School districts undertaking new construction and retrofit projects are making security for students and school property a top concern. The problem of providing security is not confined to big cities. Vandalism, theft, arson and drug abuse continue to be problems in most school districts. School systems of any size now have a director of security, and some even have their own police force. An association of school security directors has been created and there are now many commercial organizations specializing in solving security problems for educational institutions.

Consider the following statistics:

* Vandalism now costs schools (nationwide) more than $1 billion annually.

* Burglaries are occurring five times more often in schools than in businesses.

* Approximately 5,500 fires affect elementary and high school buildings each year, and have resulted in an average of $56 million in property damage on an annual basis.

* The National Fire Protection Association has stated that most school fires were of a suspicious origin.

Ensuring the safety of children is one of the challenging tasks for facility designers. Strategic use of the limited funds available requires designers to stretch construction dollars and make decisions that will keep retrofit and maintenance costs down.

There has been a substantial and growing increase in the amount of wireless fire-rated glazing used in schools. The reasons for the increase in glazing products being specified are the safety and security advantages they provide.

* With up to ten times the impact strength of traditional fire rated glazing, they can reduce the number of glass injuries due to accidental impact.

* The increased impact strength reduces glass breakage and thereby minimizes the maintenance and repair dollars spent.

* The non-wired offers more inviting aesthetics for the learning atmosphere.

* More natural light and a visually secure environment can be provided by the larger vision panels available in non-wired security glazing.

* Advanced fire-rated glazing products provide protection from radiant heat transfer from the inferno side of a fire.

Reduce the risk of student injury

More than 250,000 glass-related accidents occur annually. Injuries from wired glass involving students continue to escalate. There is also a growing concern of facility administrators over costly liability. Lawsuits as a result of wired glass injuries are prevalent. Many school districts have found these lawsuits to be quite costly. In one case, the school district tried to enlist the support of the wired glass manufacturer to stand behind the merits of its product for its impact safety. This effort proved to be of no avail, so the district had to settle out of court. This school district and many others are now limiting the use of wired glass and are opting for wireless options that reduce the potential for glass accidents and meet the safety glazing standards set by the government.

Bayonne Midtown Community school

Designers of school facilities know that the quality of children's education is affected by design. For this reason, architects are carefully manipulating natural light, space and materials to create lively interiors that make students feel that schools are exciting places for learning.

The architectural firm of Shive/Spinelli/Perantoni & Associates (SSP&A) located in Somerville, NJ and winners of the American School & University Magazine's Architecture Portfolio Award, designed Bayonne Midtown Community School in New Jersey on the cutting edge of technology. The school facility is a "school of the future" and features two formal computer labs for instant access to a computerized library for student use.

"The quality of an educational facility has a direct impact on how children learn and perform," according to the SSP&A design team. "We choose designs and materials which offer the greatest savings and accommodate changes long into the future." GPX framing systems and SuperLite II glazing were chosen by SSP&A because "it would meet strict code requirements and at the same time provide us with the full clear vision areas we needed to complement our overall design."

The new glazing systems met the fire and safety code requirements and allowed for the innovative design they wished to achieve.

SSP&A's design called for customized bay windows overlooking a huge four-story atrium in the school's computer laboratories and also required full vision 60-minute sidelites and transoms at the stairwells on each floor. This new glazing system was also installed in the high profile computer rooms, and at each of the stairwells in the sidelites and transoms.

These systems are listed and approved by both Underwriters Laboratories and Warnock Hersey International and are creating a new standard in fire protection technology. Architects and designers are no longer restricted to the small vision areas required by traditional framing.

In addition to an aesthetically pleasing and innovative design, safety was a primary requirement for the Bayonne Midtown Community School. Besides serving as a Pre K-8 school for approximately 1,200 active children, this facility also serves the entire community on a year-round basis and therefore requires easy and safe access for the senior citizens who provide volunteer services at the school.

In 1992, wireless fire and safety rated glass was installed at this facility. The glazing was installed in high traffic areas and in windows at two computer laboratories to provide full views into the four-story high atrium. Full sized sidelites were provided at the stairwells on each floor. Today, four years later, the glass still remains intact, providing security and clear vision.

"Our children have put this glazing to a rigorous test each school day for the past four years. In the locations at our school where this new glazing was installed we don't have to worry about students suffering from dangerous injuries," said Patricia L. McFeehan, principal at Midtown Community School.

Coast-to-coast success

Breakage of glass is a problem for most schools. Urban school officials across the nation report that many school districts spend between $50,000-$500,000 annually in re-glazing costs.

The Cambridge Massachusetts School District and the San Francisco California Public School District had recurring breakage of wired glass and the constant worry of injury. Both districts are located in urban settings where the children are active and the risk of accidents is high. A pilot program that has proven successful was developed in two schools within both districts. Wired glass was replaced with wireless fire and safety-rated glazing. Four years after this replacement glass was installed, there is still no breakage of the wireless glazing.

These new wireless fire-rated tempered security glazing alternatives are stronger than wired glass, thereby providing a much needed relief for the schools' glazing maintenance costs.

Vision provides protection

Typical stairwell doors carry a 60- or 90-minute fire rating and are usually solid hollow metal or wood doors glazed with only a 100 sq. inch. lite, usually 10[inches] x 10[inches] of wired glass. This 100 sq. inch vision panel is based on the maximum size allowed for wired glass in 60- or 90-minute fire doors. Today, however, stairwell doors can be glazed with full vision panels that provide more light and visibility into the stairwells to help deter crime.

Designers for the University of Washington in Seattle took advantage of the new developments in fire-rated glazing. William Renaud, AIA, of Barnett Schorr Architects in Seattle served as project manager for the University. The designers wanted to increase the amount of visible light in a high-profile, high-traffic stairwell application leading to the Executive offices in the administration building. By using this new glazing material, the designers were able to meet the rigorous fire test standards for stair-well applications, while still providing large vision areas to monitor this stairwell.

These new developments in fire-rated technology provide advantages to designers and school facilities managers. They do this by increasing student safety, enhancing visual control in classrooms and stairwells, reducing maintenance costs and increasing the use of natural light.