Many things are in common with the prevention of fires (see FAQ - Fire) but for safety's sake are repeated in both places.
You may not be able to prevent 100% of them, but 98% is a reasonable goal.
Most explosions are caused by flammable liquids or gaseous substances which are ignited. We can control virtually all flammable liquids and gases if we are diligent in managing their use, storage and transportation. Obvious things are: don't store gasoline soaked rags near the gas water heater; or other such situations. In business, chemicals and cleaning agents are frequently used in the manufacture and maintenance of products and facilities. Some of these "common" substances, when mixed together have disastrous results.
The manager of each department (or the person most familiar with these substances) should evaluate all of your procedures for the use, storage and transportation of them, providing a written report to senior management of their findings and recommendations.
Next, schedule a visit by your local Fire Marshall or Fire Inspector to review your facility and make recommendations. This should be an "Advisory Inspection" and not a mandated "Fire Inspection". The latter could produce severe reprimands, fines or "Red Tagged" shut-downs, if things are found to be negligent. These people are trained experts. Heed their advice. Their assistance should be free.
Now, here is a partial list of the things we can
not prevent from exploding:
Underground Natural Gas lines; Electrical transformers and
vaults; and Main electrical panels.
Several sensitive "sniffers" are available that warn of an impending concentration of fumes. These may be connected to your alarm system for instant notification to your staff.
Information can be found in books, periodicals and magazines at your public library or bookstore. The National Fire Prevention Association (N.F.P.A.) consists of fire departments, fire marshals and other fire experts. Consult them for their most recent publications of fire prevention and explosives.
Consult your local fire department for their advice on what information is available for your locale.
Although we wish we could control everything, there are some things that are just beyond what we can do.
We can't control: the weather (lightning caused explosions); the Acts of God; other people's misbehaving, such as rioting, insurrection, vandalism, or mental stability.
We can control what your company can and will do if one or more of these events happens to it. This is called your Disaster Recovery Plan.