The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) welcomed more than 100 business and government leaders, safety experts and emergency management officials to its new disaster-resistant headquarters in Tampa on Sept. 26.
The national nonprofit group held a ribbon-cutting ceremony and hurricane safety demonstration as part of a grand opening of the new building, which is on the campus of MOSI, Tampa’s Museum of Science & Industry.
The building features impact-resistant windows as well as impact- and pressure-resistant entry doors. The reinforced concrete structure was designed for higher wind speeds than building codes in this area consider, and includes important safety upgrades, such as lightning protection and a fire suppression system. The roof, designed to allow for a possible third-floor expansion, is a concrete slab, offering more protection than a conventional roof.
The IBHS staff occupies 22 offices around the perimeter of the building’s second floor. Interior space wraps around an atrium and includes a reception area, conference room, the IBHS Library, office cubicles and a galley. The first floor will eventually become MOSI’s Welcome Plaza.
RBK Architects of Tampa designed the building, and TECO BGA Contractors built the $2.75-million facility between July 2001 and July 2002. Proceeds from the sale of tax-free bonds financed construction and MOSI donated use of the land.
IBHS moved to Tampa in October 2000, after 22 years in Boston. The group had been in temporary office space in Tampa’s Westshore Business District.
"This is the building from which a safer nation can develop," said Larry Lange, vice president and chief underwriting officer of Auto Club Insurance Association and chairman of the IBHS board, in remarks at the event. "It is with this belief that we dedicate this building, so lives will be saved, homes will remain standing, businesses will stay open and our communities can continue to thrive in the future."
Harvey Ryland, IBHS president and CEO, thanked the many local organizations that helped the group make the move to Tampa and facilitate its relationship with MOSI.
"Our move to Tampa has been successful in every way," said Ryland. "The location gives us a strong strategic base from which to work on reducing all natural disasters, including earthquakes, windstorms, wildfires, hail and floods. It also offers the opportunity to partner with an important science center like MOSI on the National Center for Disaster Safety."
The National Center for Disaster Safety, the country’s first center for understanding and surviving all major natural disasters, will teach visitors about these events and how to protect their homes and businesses from them. The center will eventually include a series of interactive exhibits at MOSI as well as training for architects, insurance professionals, engineers and other building professionals, in addition to an extensive natural disaster research library.
Said MOSI President Wit Ostrenko, "Having IBHS on the MOSI campus is significant in many ways. Hurricanes are a metaphor for the strength that can come from such partnerships. Just as a hurricane gains power from the sun and heat energy, the
educational effectiveness of a community resource such as MOSI gains power from the energy with its partners such as IBHS. A strong partnership with a national organization like IBHS helps the science center gain strength as a contributor to the quality of life in the Tampa Bay area."
Said keynote speaker James Lee Witt, disaster management expert and former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), "Disaster prevention is significant to me because I believe that is one of the most important things a family,
community or business can do to make a community more sustainable. This is an excellent facility and the people of Tampa are lucky to have it in their community. I hope everyone takes advantage of all IBHS offers."
Ryland recognized Kawneer, Solutia and Viracon, companies that manufacture and install disaster-resistant materials, for their generous donations to the construction of the building. Garrison Glass Company of Tampa was also noted for its work on the project.
"KeepSafe Maximum Glass is excited to be a part of such an important project and to partner with the Institute for Business & Home Safety," said Shawn Donovan of Solutia. "Windows and doors can be the weakest link in a building during a hurricane, and need to be able to withstand continuous wind pressures, and repeated impacts from blunt objects."
An air-cannon demonstration of the large-missile impact test, performed by Hurricane Test Labs of Riviera Beach, showed guests at the event that flying debris in a windstorm could crash through a standard window protected by masking tape but would not penetrate a window made of impact-resistant glass.
IBHS is an initiative of the insurance industry to reduce deaths, injuries, property damage, economic losses and human suffering caused by natural disasters.
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