LAKELAND — When tornadoes ripped across central Florida on March 31, Andy Wyman didn’t worry about the weather disrupting data service at MidFlorida Federal Credit Union.
The bank’s computer servers and other information infrastructure were protected within a 22,000-square-foot concrete dome along Interstate 4, about 45 miles east of Tampa International Airport.
Peter Fedele, managing director of American Business Continuity Domes, inside a disaster recovery dome.
American Business Continuity Domes
Peter Fedele, managing director of American Business Continuity Domes, inside a disaster recovery dome.
Disaster recovery dome in Lakeland
Disaster recovery domes in Lakeland
The laundry area in a disaster recovery dome
The kitchen area of a disaster recovery dome
Andy Wyman, vice president with MidFlorida Credit Union, in his company’s section of a dome.
The bathroom area of a disaster recovery dome
Andy Wyman, vice president with MidFlorida Credit Union, in his company’s section of a dome.
Peter Fedele, managing director of American Business Continuity Domes, inside the disaster recovery mobile command center.
Peter Fedele, managing director of American Business Continuity Domes, inside a disaster recovery mobile command center.
“It takes away a lot of your disaster worries,” said Wyman, MidFlorida’s vice president of management information systems.
The big bubbles are built to withstand 300 mph winds and come with solar lighting, backup generator systems, on-site water and fuel storage, and satellite communications.
There were no data disruptions for MidFlorida as the twister skittered around Polk County, unlike the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons when some bank branches went offline for several weeks. That’s what prompted MidFlorida’s move into the dome.
The bank shares space with developer American Business Continuity Domes, a subsidiary of Miami-based Golden Sands General Contractors, which has specialized in building bank branches, vaults and ATM outlets since 1988.
“Our target market is Tampa and Orlando,” said Peter Fedele, president of ABC Domes. “We picked Lakeland because we could not find a place in Tampa that met our specifications for storm surge.”
The igloos are designed as disaster storage warehouses and command centers for banks and other businesses that want to be up and running once emergency officials give the all-clear signal following severe weather.
Too many Floridians have forgotten the destructive 2004 and 2005 storm season, Fedele said. Shortly afterward, ABC built two domes at the 10-acre site it owns on State Road 33.
ABC has retained most of the space in the dome shared with MidFlorida. The concrete floor is packed with generators and other disaster supplies.
“Our job is to get into Tampa right after the hurricane hits,” Fedele said. “We are the marine corps of the banks.”
The second dome is leased by a major national bank, which Fedele said he could not disclose for security reasons.
Last week ABC began building a 2,000-square-foot guard headquarters and helicopter pad as it begins marketing availability for four more domes on the Polk site.
“Businesses are looking at their areas of vulnerability again, and we’re seeing interest from companies that are heavily reliant on technology, security or human services,” Fedele said.
Protected space
ABC Domes has partnered with C-Shells engineers and Dome Technologies construction of Idaho Falls, Idaho, which have built reinforced steel and concrete domes around the world for 30 years.
“Our bread and butter is industrial storage for bulk materials,” said Jason South, of C-Shells. “But they make fabulous buildings as far as strength and energy efficiency. A dome is the strongest type of structure on earth.”
It costs about $35 to $40 per square foot to build the 20,000 to 30,000-square-foot dome shell, plus interior build out. Construction takes about six months to complete.
ABC Domes will only lease space at the Polk site in order to control tenants and security. Terms depend on specifics of the project but probably range from $15 to $25 per square foot, Fedele said.
ABC Domes has built a 30,000-square-foot model in Sealy, Texas, near Houston, which is leased to the same bank Fedele would not disclose in Lakeland. ABC Domes is considering additional locations in Florida, California and Arizona.
“We know the future is on our side,” Fedele said. “We are the bunker that is going to survive the next big one.”
Wyman and six other people have worked full-time in their 3,000-square-foot section of the dome since MidFlorida relocated its servers in 2007.
“We used to be on the eighth floor of an office in downtown Lakeland,” he said. “There was a nice view. The only shortcomings here are no windows and no place to eat.”