IME Office

Welcome to IME's new office located in downtown Washington, DC.

IME staff visit Congressman Blunt on the Hill

IME Visits Capitol Hill -2017

1938 IME Board of Governors

The IME has been the non-profit safety and security association of the commercial explosives industry since 1913.

The Explosives Safety and Security Institute

You cannot get there without explosives.  Learn about the millions of other things made possible by explosives by visiting our Resources page.

Advocacy

The IME is the commercial explosives industry advocate for effective, sensible and consistent regulations and legislation. 

Metal Magazines

Explosives are stored in highly secure buildings called "magazines".  Most ATF storage regulations are based on long-standing IME standards.

Metal Mining

To meet modern demand, nearly all non-renewable resources must be obtained from the earth with the use of explosives. 

IME-22 Box

Some IME standards, such as SLP-22, are incorporated by reference into Federal, State, and local regulations.

ISO 4 Test Crew

IME supports the Department of Defense's Eskimore program, which endeavors to apply state-of-the-art technology in understanding the risks associated with large explosions.

Explosives Manufacturing Plant

Explosives manufacturing plants are indistinguishable from other chemical producers.

AN Prill Tower

Ammonium nitrate is virtually irreplaceable to the commercial explosives industry.

Oil and Gas Discovery and Recovery

It is virtually impossible to discover or recover oil and natural gas without the use of commercial explosives like siesmic charges, perforating guns and other tools.

SciPan-5 Test Configuration

IME supports the Department of Defense's Eskimore program, which endeavors to enhance state-of-the-art understanding of the risks associated with large explosions.

SciPan-5 Test Data Recovery Crew

IME supports the Department of Defense's Eskimore program, which applies state-of-the-art technology in understanding the risks associated with large explosions.

SciPan-5 Test Field Work

Each flag marks a piece of magazine debris to be weighed, categorized, and GPS located.

Surface Coal Mining

Over 2/3rds of all commercial explosives are consumed in surface coal mines. 

Life Without Explosives

Before explosives, mining was accomplished by a painstaking process called firesetting. 

Bulk Explosives

Over 98% of all explosives consumed in the U.S. are delivered to the jobsite in bulk.

Life Without Dynamite and Detonators

Without Alfred Nobel's inventions of dynamite and the detonator, our lifestyle would be like that of 150 years ago; with wood being our primary building material. 

Life Without AN Prill

The invention of the ammonium nitrate prilling process, not the Texas City Disaster, led to the ten-fold increase in U.S. explosives consumption during the middle of the 20th Century.