Category: Commercial27.02.2023
Are you planning to open a shooting range or thinking of repurposing an existing space but do not know how to start? We know that designing a gun range from scratch can be challenging. And there are numerous considerations that must be taken into account. In this blog, we will discuss user requirements, zoning, compliance, and more. Let us get on with it.
First Things First
Are you building an indoor or outdoor shooting range? You need to determine first the services you want to offer as it will dictate the property and amount of space you need. While many customers prefer the air-conditioned comfort of indoor shooting ranges and their accessibility, it is also prone to limitations and constraints depending on the zoning. Other customers prefer the open-air feel of an outdoor shooting range but this type of range faces challenges in bullet containment due to the possibility of soil and water lead contamination.
Or if you want to cater to military personnel and law enforcers, you should offer them a training space for marksmanship and life-like combat experiences to prepare them for any threat.
Laws and Regulations
You need to know the gun control laws of your local municipality, country, or state. Check if the location or the property is zoned for a shooting range business. Apart from complying with zoning and building regulations, you should also observe other shooting range-specific and general standards, such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) regulations.
You should also take into consideration the cost of structural and ventilation requirements when going with an indoor shooting range. When designing your indoor shooting range, the HVAC systems should comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and EPA requirements.
Range Design Criteria
Building a shooting range requires a lot of planning, organization, due diligence, and challenging work. It is easy for shooting range developers to feel overwhelmed with questions about ventilation, lead abatement, general environmental concerns, zoning regulations, proper range equipment, and much more. Ensure you have crossed all your t’s and dotted all your i’s before moving forward.
For guidance in planning shooting range facilities, you can refer to the Range Design Criteria prepared by the U.S. Department of Energy. Or you can also consult with experts in this field.
Quickly Design Your Gun Range with Expert Help
When choosing a vendor, it is important to consider their industry expertise and years of experience in shooting range construction and design.
InVeris Training Solutions has over 95 years of Caswell and Meggitt heritage and 15,000+ ranges fielded worldwide. We bring the industry’s best gun range design, development, installation, and support experiences to every job site. InVeris has all the resources you need under one roof to guide you through shooting range design, development, and management.
InVeris Training Solutions has created a Gun Range Design Worksheet that is designed to get you started planning for your gun range construction. The worksheet shows you the multiple options available for bullet traps, shooting stalls, target carriers, and more so that one of our gun range design experts can fine tune our recommendations based on your unique requirements.
