Blast Partnership

In 2015 Rigid formally teamed with Baker Engineering and Risk Consultants (BakerRisk), an industry leader in the design and evaluation of blast resistant construction, to deliver Blast Resistant Pre-Engineered Buildings for industrial applications. Together Rigid and BakerRisk offer a turn-key solution that couples the comprehensive understanding of blast design with the efficiencies of a Pre-Engineered Metal Building. This turnkey solution will ensure the piece-of-mind needed, to confidently deliver a product that meets the specification and owner’s requirements.

With the emergence of domestic fracking and the associated growth in natural gas and refining facilities, several owners have encountered the challenge of safely locating personnel around expanding production and within limited real estate.  This challenge, and the emergence of updated industry guidance like API RP 752 and API RP 753, has pushed owners to retrofit existing structures for higher blast loads or construct new buildings to accommodate the growth and meet the latest industry guidance.

Rigid / BakerRisk recognized this need within the petrochemical processing industry for a more versatile, customizable structure, capable of withstanding blast loads.  Historically there have been two primary options to consider when constructing a new industrial blast resistant building. They are reinforced concrete structures and blast resistant modular buildings (BRM).

While both options have merit in resisting blast loads, Rigid understands that both options can be restrictive when considering versatility, customization, schedule and cost.

With the advances in engineering and testing, Pre-Engineered Metal Buildings have become the building of choice when the blast load is between 0 and 5 psi.  Pre-Engineered Metal Buildings can be engineered and designed to be more cost efficient and durable in this blast range.