FutureVu Brands: The Glass Solution, Part of the P.R.O. Model™

Three times the lock did its job, and three times the glass beside it did not. So this page covers the facilities part of the answer: who FutureVu Brands is, what the four solutions are, which standard they meet, and where glass sits in the P.R.O. Model™. The letter that goes with it is on chrisgrollnek.com.

What happened at the glass beside the locked door?

2012, Connecticut: the front doors were locked, and the buzzer and camera worked. Then the killer shot through the glass next to the doors and walked in.

2023, Tennessee: again, the killer shot through the glass doors.

2026, Oregon: the doors were locked. The killer fired into the glass panes of a set of double doors, then went into the first classroom on the left.

In each case the people did their part, and the lock did its part. Then the opening failed at the glass. That is the one component almost nobody had asked anyone to test.

What is the standard, and who has written it into law?

The test standard

ASTM F3561 is the test method for exactly this failure. ASTM first published it in 2022 and revised it in 2023 and 2025. Importantly, it tests the whole opening together: the glass, the frame and the hardware. First, the lab fires rounds into the assembly. Then it runs a timed forced-entry attack. Finally, it rates the result on a scale from Level 1 to Level 8. In short, a product that passes at a given level has shown that a person could not get through the opening within the test, even after it had taken fire.

Texas and Tennessee

Texas wrote the fix into its school safety standards in 2023 and amended them in August 2024 (19 TAC §61.1031). As a result, glass in and beside exterior doors must now be modified so it cannot be easily broken, and so must ground-level windows near those doors. The rule names forced-entry-resistant film as its example. Tennessee took a similar path. Its 2023 school safety law likewise requires districts to install clear, entry-resistant film. In April 2024 lawmakers removed the words “bullet-resistant” from the bill, because, as one representative said on the House floor, the product is entry-resistant film.

The building code

The International Building Code does not yet require any of this. In 2025, proposal G88-25 asked to add ASTM F3561 to the code for schools. However, it drew opposition at its hearing, so the national code is unchanged for now.

Who is FutureVu Brands?

The company

FutureVu Brands, Inc. is a platform company in Marietta, Georgia. Essentially, it groups a family of glazing, film, energy and security retrofit businesses under one roof. Each brand has its own president, while the platform handles finance, IT, marketing, HR and compliance. The lineage runs back to Window Film Depot, founded in 1999, and to DefenseLite, the retrofit security panel invented in 2014. Then, in 2021, FutureVu Brands itself became the operating parent. The company manufactures its security glazing in Marietta and at MTI Shield in Glendale, Arizona.

The divisions and the franchise

Three divisions matter most for this page. First, Window Film Depot sells and installs security film and attachment systems; it is a 3M authorized dealer and 3M’s 2025 National Dealer of the Year. Second, Impact Security manufactures DefenseLite and BulletShield, and in April 2026 it launched SafeSuite™ for interior hardening. Third, RiotLite is the security film brand FutureVu created in 2025 around an ASTM F3561 film system.

The rest of the family explains the business model. CoolVu Franchise Concepts, founded in 2021, is a home-office-based franchise. Specifically, it puts trained installers of specialty films, graphics and coatings in local markets. LongVu Wholesale supplies the film and glazing-related materials, and CoolVu Auto Spa serves the automotive side. In other words, the franchise is how the work scales past one installer in one city, and the wholesale arm is how the materials get there.

Leadership and the ASPP™ relationship

Jeff Franson is the chief executive. Joe Mauldin leads sales, and more recently Brett Hanley became Director of Architectural Markets in May 2026. FutureVu Brands signed its partner agreement with ASPP™ in February 2026, and its executives joined the ASPP™ Community of Experts in July 2026. We introduced the partnership here in January. Also, for the record, Chris Grollnek advises the FutureVu Brands board of directors.

What are the four solutions?

Solution	What it is	Tested to	Where it fits
Security film with an attachment system Window Film Depot, 3M films	A multi-layer polyester film bonded to the inside face of existing glass. In addition, an attachment system anchors the film to the frame, so the broken sheet stays in the opening. For example, the demonstration video on this page shows a 24 mil 3M security film.	The film maker tests film and attachment combinations. Therefore, ask for the test report for the exact film, thickness and attachment you are specifying.	Existing glass that has to stay in place and stay clear. In fact, Texas and Tennessee wrote their rules with this product in mind.
RiotLite FutureVu Brands, 2025	A security film system engineered as a system, film plus attachment, specifically around the ASTM F3561 test.	ASTM F3561 Level 3ET, per the manufacturer.	Entry doors and sidelights where you want a rated film system without replacing the glass.
DefenseLite Impact Security	A clear, architectural-grade polycarbonate shield in an aluminum frame. It mounts over the existing glazing from the inside (U.S. Patent 9,790,735). In other words, it is not a film.	ASTM F3561 Level 8 for DefenseLite Pro, per the manufacturer; warranty up to 15 years.	Entries, vestibules and ground-floor glass, especially where the assessment calls for the highest forced-entry delay without replacing the window.
BulletShield Impact Security	The bullet-resistant derivative of DefenseLite. It is for the openings where the threat assessment says the glazing itself has to stop rounds.	UL 752, Levels 1 to 8, per the manufacturer.	Reception points, guard positions, courthouses and other locations named by the assessment.
SafeSuite™ Impact Security, April 2026	A system approach to interior hardening and forced-entry protection. In short, it covers the rooms people retreat to once the perimeter has done its job.	Component ratings per the manufacturer.	Interior safe rooms and offices in high-risk facilities.

Before you buy

The ratings in the table are the manufacturer’s statements. So, before anything is purchased, ask for the test report for the exact assembly you are buying: glass, film or panel, frame and attachment together. The standard tests the opening, not the product in isolation.

Where does glass fit in the P.R.O. Model™?

The P.R.O. Model™ stands for Prevention, Response and Options. The U.S. Department of Justice selected it twice as “A” national standard for the Assistant United States Attorneys and across the Department. Basically, it treats a building the way it treats a plan: as layers that each buy time for the next. Most of the prevention work sits on the people side, for example the behavior somebody noticed, the report that reached the right desk, and the plan with a named owner. The facilities part is the delay layer. Unfortunately, glass is the delay layer most buildings forgot. A door and sidelight that hold for the length of a lockdown turn a response into a recovery; a door that fails at the glass turns a locked building into an open one.

ASPP™ does not sell glass. Instead, we walk the building, we name the layer that is missing, and we bring in the Community of Experts partner for that layer. For the glass, of course, that partner is FutureVu Brands.

Watch the demonstration

Read the letter

Finally, Chris Grollnek wrote the companion piece in his own name. It takes the form of a letter to the editor, and FutureVu Brands may host it where appropriate: Isn’t it time we’ve had enough? The glass beside the locked door.

Brecourt Solutions, a Community of Experts member, published the letter on its own site on 19 October 2026 with a note on the drone layer.

The FutureVu Brands solutions sheet

Similarly, one page covers the company, the franchise model, the four solutions, the standard and the two state rules. Download the solutions sheet (PDF).

Common questions about security glazing and the P.R.O. Model™

Is this bulletproof glass?

No, and we do not use that word. Labs test security film and retrofit glazing for forced entry. In other words, they test whether a person can get through the opening after someone has shot, struck or pried the glass. Then ASTM F3561 rates that resistance in levels. Sometimes a threat assessment calls for the glass itself to stop rounds. That is a different product, BulletShield, tested to UL 752, and it is a different conversation.

Does my state already require this?

Texas does, for public schools, under 19 TAC §61.1031. Glass in and beside exterior doors has to be modified so it cannot be easily broken, and so do ground-level windows near those doors. Similarly, Tennessee requires its districts to install clear, entry-resistant film under the 2023 school safety law, as amended in April 2024. Other states are moving too. However, the national building code does not yet require it.

Can grant money pay for it?

Often. Texas and Tennessee wrote their school safety grant programs with this work in mind. Likewise, the federal Nonprofit Security Grant Program funds target hardening for houses of worship and nonprofits. FutureVu’s Window Film Depot division works with administrators on the specification and the grant paperwork. Meanwhile, ASPP™ helps the organization decide what to specify.

Does ASPP™ sell glass?

No. ASPP™ assesses the building and the plan. Then it names the layer that is missing and brings in a vetted Community of Experts partner for that layer. For example, FutureVu Brands is the partner for the glass. In short, the assessment comes first, and it decides the product, not the other way around.

Related reading

• Retrofit Security for Prevention: welcoming FutureVu Brands to the Community of Experts
• The Department of Justice selection and the National Active Shooter Prevention Training Video
• The ASPP™ Community of Experts

Sources and further reading

• ASTM International. F3561-25, Standard Test Method for Forced-Entry-Resistance of Fenestration Systems After Simulated Active Shooter Attack (first edition 2022). store.astm.org
• Texas Administrative Code, Title 19, §61.1031, School Safety Requirements. law.cornell.edu
• WSMV, Tennessee, 15 August 2024, on the April 2024 amendment replacing “bullet-resistant” with “clear, entry-resistant film” in Tennessee’s school safety law. wsmv.com
• I Dig Hardware, on ICC proposal G88-25 to add ASTM F3561 to the International Building Code for schools. idighardware.com
• FutureVu Brands, Inc., company history, brands and team. futurevubrands.com
• Impact Security, DefenseLite, BulletShield, RiotLite and SafeSuite™ specifications. defenselite.com
• Window Film Depot, 3M authorized dealer, security film and attachment systems. windowfilmdepot.com
• The demonstration video, 17 October 2026. youtube.com/shorts/nJzAfJ2v9ik