Most of the steel-reinforced concrete hangars and the twin shuttle launch pads at Kennedy Space Center were built in the 1960s and 1970s according to standards set by the American Society of Civil Engineers at the time.

The standards were based upon a statistical analysis of:

• The worst-case storm a structure might be exposed to during the 50- to 100-year lifetime of a building
• The chances a building would actually be exposed to that type of storm during that time frame

Existing shuttle structures at KSC, consequently, were designed to withstand sustained winds of no more than 105 to 125 miles (168 to 200 kilometers) per hour. The major facilities and the winds speeds they can withstand include:

• Vehicle Assembly Building: 125 miles (200 kilometers) per hour
• Launch pads 39A and 39B: 125 miles (200 kilometers) per hour
• Hazardous Payload Servicing Facility: 125 miles (200 kilometers) per hour
• Space Station Processing Facility: 110 miles (176 kilometers) per hour
• Orbiter Processing Facility hangars: 105 miles (168 kilometers) per hour

In the wake of Hurricane Andrew in 1992 which made landfall in south Florida and caused $26 billion in damage the society revised its guidelines for new construction to 135 miles (216 kilometers) per hour.

NASA officials say any new buildings at KSC will be designed and built to that new standard.