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Kevlar Storm Room

DuPont Kevlar® is a silky, soft man-made fiber that is five times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis, combining great strength with great lightness. Kevlar® is best known for its application in the field of bullet resistant personal body armor. DuPont has introduced a "StormRoom®" concept that could use these reinforced fibers in the residential building industry. Application of the Kevlar® reinforcing system to a room will protect it from penetrations due to wind borne debris from a major hurricane or tornado event.

In impact tests, the StormRoom® withstood repeated hits by a 12 foot long., 15 lb. 2x4 fired at windborne speeds greater than those seen in Category 5 storms. And though the StormRoom® is heavily reinforced, it does not affect the performance of a cell phone single so a call for assistance can be made inside the room.

Typical construction for a StormRoom® includes walls made of a foam core and an interior sheathing of Kevlar®, sandwiched between two layers of plywood or OSB. The interior walls can be finished to match the rest of the home, and electricity and plumbing can be also be easily added.

DuPont has developed several pre-built configurations to be incorporated to new or existing homes, and setup requires less than a one day (cost ranges from $5,000 to $10,000 per room). The StormRoom® can also double as an extra closet or powder room. The Kevlar® StormRoom® was integrated into the NextGen home on display at the 2005 International Builder's Show in Orlando, FL.

Contact:

Arthur Nelson
DuPont Advanced Fibers Systems
P.O. Box 27001
Richmond, VA 23261
Phone: (804) 383-4088
Fax: (804) 383-4376
Email: arthur.r.nelson@usa.dupont.com
Web: www.dupont.com/kevlar