4 : Fortified & Hardened Homes - Products & Services

Fortified & Hardened Homes

Hardened Structures is a Professional Design & Construction Program Management Firm specializing in the confidential planning, design and covert construction of fortified homes (or conventional homes) with underground shelters or bunkers (shown above), stand alone shelters and other types of sheltering options. These facilities are designed with independent sources of power and water. They can serve as a primary dwelling, vacation home, retreat, long term shelter or expanded multi-function compound. Client confidentiality and total project secrecy are paramount on all of our projects.

Our Team comprises of a core group of independent design firms and general contractors with specialized training in the unique design and construction requirements of Fortified Homes.

Balanced Survivability Design Approach

Because it is impossible to protect against all threats and hazards, adopting a "balanced approach" in designs that considers intended functions, threat mitigation, and budget, is imperative. This is where Hardened Structures experience and know-how separates our Team from the general purpose Architects and Engineers. Our Teams experience has shown there is no one-size-fits-all or formula of security features and programs that will ensure 100% safety against all manmade or natural disasters.

In order to meet our client's goals and budgets, our Team ensures each project is designed and specified to meet a particular hierarchy of anticipated threats, not all possible threats. In other words, Hardened Structures' Team designs your facility to achieve a Balanced Survivability, ensuring that no one system or component is the "Achilles Heel". No matter if your personal threat hierarchy focuses first and foremost on a regional natural disaster, Nuclear, Biological, Chemical or EMP/HEMP event, or forced/armed entry; our experienced and highly specialized team of engineers, scientists and ex-Navy SEALS can confidentiality design and covertly construct your facility efficiently and cost effectively.

Traditional American executive home architecture has a number of pitfalls which are detrimental to secure home planning.

We can advise some sound planning principals for hardened home design which are contrary to the typical executive home plan, but very favorable to making the home much more ready to protect families in a crisis event.

One key design concern is a master suite separated far from children's bedrooms, often on the opposite site of the home, past the main entry, combined with a grand open plan main entry to great room layout ( 70% of home invasions occur through the front door ).

All humans natural reaction is to personally go secure their children in an emergency.

Therefore one can easily see how a home with the master and children's bedrooms separated by the main entry is a major design flaw in secure home design in event of a home invasions, (or even in a tornado or fire or earthquake).

Fortified And Hardened Homes

Secure And Elegant Fortified Homes

At Hardened Structures our architects can design to your individual architectural style be it Contemporary, Traditional, Colonial, Mediterranean, Beach Front, Southwestern or any personal preference.  We can also work with your own architect to achieve the level of protection and perfection necessary for your personal residence.  Our security consultants are internationally recognized experts in the fields of building fortifications, personal security, advanced security systems and offensive/defensive components.

At Hardened Structures we employ a Multi-Hazard Engineering methodology that not only recognizes individual threats sequentially, but also address all hazards/threats as simultaneously occurring, so as to insure there is no "Achilles Heel" within our designs.  The Protection Program for a Fortified Home is varied and is usually determined by the Client's Threat, Risk and Asset assessments.

The home can be protected against a wide range of threats including forced entry/assaults, climate change, chemical / biological / radiological / explosive (CBRE) agents, air-blast, ground shock, penetration, fragmentation and damage to the structure and equipment due to explosive loading.  Along with the Client's particular living, function and storage requirements, the designs also incorporate active offensive and defensive components, and mechanical responses to reduce the effectiveness of any given threat while providing for individual/family long term living requirements.

For most of our clients, one of the most important aspects of designing their Fortified Home is that it not resemble a fortified home and that the outwardly appearance is of a well designed custom home.  Only the owners will know the true capabilities and functions of the home which may include:

• Vaults for firearms and ammunition
• Vaults for precious metals, cash and other vaulables
• Remote control Offensive and Defensive systems
• Hidden compartments and sliding bookcases
• Emergency escape ways
• Alternative energy and sustainability systems

• Vehicle storage and fuel systems
• Ballistic walls, windows and doors
• Fire resistance
• "Off Grid" electrical capabilities
• Independent water and sewage
• Advanced security systems, CCTV, sensors and alarms
• Hidden passages and entrances
• Underground bomb shelter and storage