This technical report documents the development of the Urban Blast Tool (UBT) for the Manhattan Financial District, see BIPS 09. The report describes the technical considerations and studies performed in the development of the UBT. These include consideration of the influence of the urban landscape and environmental factors on the propagation of blast pressures. The development of the UBT also involved studies to determine the vulnerability of different column types and the potential for steel moment frame, concrete moment frame and flat plate construction to suffer extensive structural collapse as a result of first floor column failure. In addition, analyses of Emergency Evacuation, Rescue, and Recovery (EERR) systems and developed fragility information were conducted to determine the likelihood of damage as a result of an improvised explosive device (IED) attack. These are the first systematic analytical studies to evaluate the functionality of the equipment following an explosive event. This report will be updated yearly, as the UBT is updated.
Learn More:
BIPS 05 - Preventing Structures from Collapsing to Limit Damage to Adjacent Structures (PDF, 196 page - 27.49 MB)
- Chapter 1: Project Overview: Page 1-1
- Chapter 2: High-Fidelity Simulation Software: Page 2-1
- Chapter 3: Structural Column Damage Modeling Studies: Page 3-1
- Chapter 4: Progressive Collapse Modeling Studies: Page 4-1
- Chapter 5: Environmental Influences: Effect of Overcast Sky: Page 5-1
- Chapter 6: Emergency Evaluation, Rescue and Recovery (EERR): Page 6-1
- Equipment Fragilities: Page 7-1
- Chapter 7: Urban Blast Tool: Page 8-1
- Chapter 8: Guidelines on How to Apply the UBT to Protect: Page 9-1
- Structures to Resist IED Attacks: Page 10-1
- Chapter 9: References: Page 11-1
If you would like a copy of Aging Infrastructure: Issues, Research and Technology, please contact bips@dhs.gov.