Building a SCIF vs. Building a SCIF That Performs

I've spent a lot of my career working through the challenges that come with SCIF construction, TEMPEST requirements, RF shielding, and secure facility performance. This series shares some of those lessons and observations not the secrets of how to build a SCIF, but experiences and perspectives that may be helpful to others working in the secure construction community. This is Part 1 of 6.

There is a big difference between building a SCIF and building a SCIF that performs.

On paper, a project can look perfect. The drawings have been reviewed. Specifications have been written. Required materials have been identified. Every trade has a scope of work, and everyone believes they understand their piece of the project.

Then construction starts.

That's where design intent meets field conditions and where seemingly minor decisions can have major consequences.

• A penetration gets added that wasn't coordinated.

• A material gets substituted because it appears equivalent.

• An installation may satisfy normal commercial construction requirements but fail to account for the security requirements of the facility.

• One trade unknowingly modifies something installed by another trade.

And sometimes everything looks perfectly acceptable when construction is complete until performance testing tells a different story.

These situations don't necessarily mean someone performed poor-quality work. In many cases, the installer may have done exactly what they would normally do on a commercial construction project.

That's part of the challenge.

A SCIF is not a normal commercial construction project.

Over this series, I'm going to share some of the lessons I've learned about the difference between completing a SCIF and delivering one that actually performs as intended. Not the secrets of how to build one but the principles I believe owners, designers, contractors, project managers, and security professionals should be thinking about throughout the process.

Because successful secure construction starts long before final inspection or testing.

And that means the secure perimeter doesn't care where one contractor's scope ends and another begins.

Next in the series: Part 2 — A SCIF Is a System, Not a Collection of Scopes

About the author: Danny Heck is the Technical Director for Secure Solutions at SPG, Inc., a veteran-owned firm that works across the full life of secure facilities design, preconstruction, construction, testing, and accreditation and teaches the standards behind that work.

Planning a secure facility? The best time to bring experienced secure-facility professionals into the conversation is early while the problems are still lines on a drawing. Contact SPG, Inc.

Building the expertise in-house? SPG, Inc. teaches courses on TEMPEST shielding and ICD 705. See available courses.

More lessons from the field: follow Danny Heck on LinkedIn.