With the threat of terrorism greater now than ever, building and facility owners must consider possible terrorism threats to their properties. Possible threats may be chemical, biological, radiological, or explosive in nature. Although a terrorism attack on a building is a rare event, all buildings represent potential targets to a terrorist group. As a prudent safety measure, building owners and engineers can take steps to make their buildings less attractive as potential terrorist targets. Building owners and engineers must be selective in choosing those building features that are most feasible and appropriate for their building. Typical threat mitigation and response actions may include increasing security, upgrading mechanical systems, developing emergency response plans, and educating building occupants.
Designing to accommodate potential terrorism threats represents a new frontier for engineers. As part of this new frontier, design engineers may be asked to incorporate terrorism mitigation features into their designs. Facility managers now must consider terrorism implications in how they operate their buildings. The realm of mechanical engineering and facility operations has now expanded to include the new frontier of terrorism mitigation and response.