How Safety Bollard Protect Your Employees

Safety bollards protect site workers and the general public alike from accidents, vandalism, and crime.  Statistics show that many devastating workplace injuries are caused by errant vehicle traffic.  Safety bollards decrease the likelihood of injuries in the following ways:

1. By creating a physical barrier between people and sources of danger – Safety bollards vary greatly in size and strength, from short steel posts to massive concrete structures.  Yet they’re remarkably similar in their ability to repel danger.  This makes them an excellent shield against all types of hazards, from stray vehicles to terrorist attacks.  Yet they need not look imposing or intimidating.  In fact, they often do double duty as planters, statues, fountains, entryways, and other decorative public works.
   
2. By serving as a deterrent to both careless behavior and deliberate acts of destruction – Safety bollards are powerful visual reminders that an area is off-limits to vehicles, human beings, or both.  In today’s information-saturated society, thousands of messages compete for everyone’s attention on a daily basis.  Safety bollards remind passersby that they should pay attention to their surroundings.  They also serve as a warning to those who would cause harm on purpose.
   
3. By channelizing traffic away from sensitive areas – For example, walking and biking paths are increasingly common sights across the country as people place greater emphasis on personal fitness.  As they do, however, the need to make motorists aware of their presence grows as well.  Safety bollards serve this purpose, helping to keep car and foot traffic separate.  They do the same for pedestrian walkways, construction zones, and entrances to public facilities. 
   

Today’s world offers unprecedented opportunities for education, income, and personal enrichment.  Along with these advances, however, comes expanding infrastructure and an increasing need to safeguard human beings from harm, be it intentional or otherwise.  Safety bollards play a crucial role in these efforts.  As the planet grows more interconnected, the need for these structures will only increase.  Public officials and private business owners should keep this fact in mind as they strive to make their locations safer.

Originally Posted HERE.

Frangible Bollards for Structural Concrete

Protecting assets and pedestrians in a concrete structure often poses particular challenge to designers and architects.  Any bollard used must be strong enough and imposing enough to prevent errant vehicle traffic from causing damage, but yet cannot be a liability to the entire structure.  For this reason, embedded bollards are rarely used in pre- and post-tension concrete structures.  Should a vehicle impact and embedded bollard that does not give, potential for catastrophic structural failure exists.  Further, options to repair bent bollards are severely limited, leaving the property owner stuck with unsightly bollards.

This has left architects and property managers with only welded steel plate bollards as a safe option.  Even when used, often the anchor have to be design for shearing to avoid the possibility of damaging tendons. Unfortunately, as most parking garage owners know, welded-plate bollards are extremely weak and easily damaged, as this outdoor photo demonstrates.

Today there is a new type of bollard that offers the protection rivaling embedded bollard, while maintaining the integrity of the structural concrete.  The patented SlowStop Rebounding Bollard system is a surface mounted bollard that absorbs impacts using a unique energy absorbing disc hidden in the bottom of the bollard system.  This disc allows the bollard to tilt approximately 20 degrees upon impact, then rebound to upright (see DEMO VIDEO).  It is attached to concrete by way of concrete screw anchors, however the base of the bollard system, and the bollard pipe itself, are both designed to bend or break before the anchors pull out the foundation concrete.

Not only does this system provide for a superior safety in a structural concrete building, but it reduces damage to vehicles that may impact the bollard.  It also takes reduced damage itself, due to the shock absorbing properties of the rebounding bollard.  Should any part of the system become damaged, each part can be changed out in modular fashion.  The system is easy to install and usefully in retro-fit situations once tendon locations have been identified.

The system is available in 3", 4", and 6" sizes, each of which is specified based on quantifiable energy absorption testing data.  The 4" bollard is even particularly useful for creating bollard enhanced handicap parking sign posts.

Visit www.slowstop.com to learn more about this innovative new product and how it solves one of today's trickiest design problems for parking garages and structural concrete buildings.

A Better Way to Create Handicap Parking Bollard Signs

Originally posted at slowstop.com

Introduction

Parking lots throughout the nation are required to have adequate parking space for handicapped and disabled drivers by law due to the Americans with Disability Act.  Proper signage must be displayed reserving these spaces.  This often leads to increased cost in designing parking lots as well as significant maintenance due to damaged sign posts.

Background

There are two main types of parking spaces reserved for the disabled.  The first is the "strip mall" type which are parking spaces directly in front of building access.  These are either perpendicular with the bulding or angled in.  Sometimes the handicap placard is mounted to a building column, but more often a simple signpost or bollard signpost embedded in concrete is used.  Sometimes the building curb can act as a car stop to avoid damage to the sign.  The second type is found in an open parking lot, usually closest to the building, but seperated by a travel lane.  Again, a sign post or bollard sign post is used to mount the placard, however a concrete car stop is almost always needed to avoid damage to the sign post.

Problems

When designing facilities needing these signs, the main difficulty with traditional signs is one of cost and coordination.  Bollard signs are more effective than plain signposts, due to increased visibility as well as sturdiness, however their cost is more and they also require either pre-pouring the bollard, or coring the concrete after it has cured to place bollard.


The main problem that owners and facility managers have with these signs is constant damage from bumps and impacts.  Even when a car stop is provided, some vehicles have longer overhangs which can reach the signs and damage them.  Repairs are often costly, requiring the hiring of a parking lot repair company to dig out an old sign and replace with a new.  The addition of car stops where none exist can also be expensive.

A Better Solution

Thanks to the new SlowStop Rebounding Bollard system, a solution has arrived that can solves the issues of high up-front cost and repeated maintenance.  The SlowStop Bollard system is a steel bollard with an energy absorbing elastomer hidden inside.  When impacted, the bollard gives about 20 degrees before locking solid.  This decreases damage to the bollard and sign, to vehicles impacting the bollard, and to the concrete it is attached.  The SlowStop Handicap Parking Bollard Sign system is also very simple to install, requiring only a hammerdrill and an impact wrench to surface mount to concrete.  Once this is done, the bollard is filled with concrete mix to hold the sign pole in place, and installation is complete.

Advantages

This system has several cost advantages.  First off, on a concrete surface, no coring is needed to place the sign.  This eliminates coordination with a concrete contractor as well.  Second, no car stop is needed, as the bollard acts as its own car stop.  The system is flexible, and can accommodate custom sign placards.  It can also be moved easily if needed.

More Durable, Less Expensive

See detailed product information HERE. 

Proper Bollard Spacing

Originally posted at:  www.slowstop.com

We're often asked if we have any recommendations for bollard spacing.  Obviously this is a complicated question, as it depends on numerous factors, such as where the bollards are used, for what purpose, and what is the expected traffic around the bollard.  In this article I won't discuss security rated bollards, because I believe this is a science to itself that requires careful engineering and is not appropriate for a blog post.

The most important consideration for most other application will be whether or not pedestrian traffic is expected in the area, and whether or not the area is a potential emergency exit route.  The Americans with Disabilities Act often conflicts with the desired safety and security needs of the bollard spacing designer.  Spacing of bollards in any area where pedestrians might need to traverse needs to be a minimum of three feet to allow for wheelchair ingress and egress.  Four feet apart is a more common practice to allow extra clearance.  Remember to consider any objects that extend from the bollard, especially with some architectural, removable, and lighted bollards.  The three foot minimum should be between the farthest extensions of the bollard.

When protecting a utility or other object that does not require pedestrian egress, spacing can be much closer if desired.  This usually depends on the expected mass and speed of vehicles travelling in an area when compared to the strength of the bollard.  Here your most important consideration is speed of the vehicle.  Remember that energy is function of mass times speed squared, meaning that as speed increases, energy increases rapidly.  Spacing bollards tighter together, or even connecting them with cross bars, will increase the strength of the barrier.  As a rule of thumb, if the spacing between the bollards is less than twice the impact height on the bollard, strength of the bollards will double when impacted together.

An common application of this principle is the horseshoe or u-bollard, most often seen protecting fuel pumping stations.  A typical automobile vehicle bumper height is in the range of 17"-19".  Given this, in order to double the strength of the bollard, the two vertical elements should be placed roughly 34"-38" apart.  Of course the size of the fuel pumping island will impact whether or not this is feasible.

If automobile traffic is your main consideration, bollard spacing should be no more that five feet apart.  Even the smallest automobiles available will be prevented from entering at this spacing.  If fork lift or other industrial vehicles are the vehicles to be denied access, consider the width of the thinnest vehicle to be stopped and ensure that your bollard spacing is tighter than that vehicles' width.

Loading docks often use bollards to prevent trucks from impacting the building outside of the loading dock bumpers.  Standard US bays have bumper plates that have an outside dimension of  96".  This matches the outside width of most trailers and shipping containers.  Give a 6" gap on either side and space loading dock bollards 9' apart (inside dimension).  One special type of bollard, the rebounding bollard, can often be used to act as a bumper due to the fact that it gives upon impact, slowing the truck into postion.

As a final note, you should also consider the need to allow emergency vehicle access to an area.  If this is required, you may need to have at least on area with a wide spacing, or at a minimum, a removable bollard that can be quickly removed in order to allow for emergency access to an area.

Ideal Applications for Traffic Bollards: Warehouses and Industrial

This post is the last of a five part article dealing with types of bollards and their ideal uses.  This post will discuss bollard use in industrial manufacturing plants as well as warehouses.

Pedestrian Protection

No matter the work setting, anywhere that moving vehicles have the potential to injure workers and guests alike, adequate protection is required.  Simple safety training of fork lift operators, delivery truck drivers, and plant personnel is often not enough to ensure pedestrian safety.  Accidents with heavy vehicles are often catastrophic and require additional safeguarding to protect people from injury.  A line of bollard or bollard fencing in high traffic area is key.  It is also especially important to protect operators and workers in areas where they may not be able to see oncoming traffic, such as when performing work related tasks.  Break areas are another important area to consider as workers are often inattentive while on break.

Many businesses choose to use surface mounted steel plate bollards in these applications, as the speeds of vehicles is often low and this is adequate to stop incidental contact with forbidden areas.  Cored or embedded bollards can leave a factory owner with a Swiss cheese plant floor, especially given the flexibility required of the modern factory.  But because welded plate surface mounted bollards can quickly come loose and fall into disrepair, rebounding type bollards are recommended for their ability to absorb impact and avoid damage and lost truck loads.  These can also be used to assist in proper positioning, as it is acceptable to use them as a positive stop without a jarring impact of a traditional bollard.

Loading Docks and Doors

It’s no secret that warehouse loading dock areas take a beating.  Delivery trucks are very large and very heavy, and maneuvering them can be difficult even for the most experienced driver.  In order to protect building walls, loading ramps, and high bay doors, savvy warehouse managers install strong bollards to protect their facilities from damage due to repeated low speed impacts from heavy vehicles.

Related to this is the interior plant doorway made for vehicle traffic.  An inattentive driver can strike the interior walls causing a potentially dangerous situation, especially for a cinder block wall.  Bollards strategically placed in the doorway just inside the wall opening can prevent this sort of damage and save the plant from costly repairs.

Pallet Racks

One of the most common workplace fines issued by the Occupations Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) is for damaged pallet racks.  Pallet racks are subject to damage because of the large frequency of use by forklifts loading and unloading product.  The slightest impact can damage structural uprights and compromise the load integrity of the rack systems.  There are many devices on the market to protect pallet rack uprights such as cushions and guards, but the most effective is arguable a well-placed bollard.   Corners are an especially important area to protect as forklift can clip the end of the rack cutting a turn.  These tend to be lighter bollards in the 3” class as speeds tend to be low.

Equipment and Automation

Industrial equipment and automation can be quite expensive, not to mention critical to plant operations and business revenue.  It is imperative that such equipment is protected from vehicle traffic to eliminate the possibility of completely avoidable downtime.  Safety fencing is often used to protect personnel from entering dangerous equipment operations areas, but bollards or bollard fencing can serve a dual purpose of prohibiting access from both workers and vehicular traffic.  It is not uncommon to see expensive automation equipment surrounded by a line of bollards with W-rail attached along plant aisle ways.  At other times, simple bollard protection to keep vehicles away from delicate personnel safety fencing may be adequate.

Conclusion

In these days of hyper competitive business environments, the costs from unnecessary interruption to operations from vehicle accidents are intolerable.  Further, the safety of employees is a major goal of most companies.  When viewed from that perspective, the installation of protective bollards throughout industrial operations is imperative and has become commonplace.  Business owners and operations managers should carefully consider areas of vehicle traffic, and especially areas that can be prone to damage or injury.

This post concludes our look at ideal bollard applications.  Although not all inclusive of the many uses of traffic bollard, we have performed a comprehensive look at the most common installations.

Ideal Applications for Traffic Bollards: Drive-Thrus

This post is part four of a five part article dealing with types of bollards and their ideal uses.  Today I’ll discuss various drive-thru applications where bollards are often found protecting equipment and personnel.

Banks and ATMs

Perhaps the most obvious use for protective bollards is at the traditional bank drive through teller.  These areas have expensive equipment and are usually narrow lanes, requiring protection from drivers who might struggle to get close enough to the machine.  More recently, all banks have installed drive through automated teller machines (ATM) with similar requirements for protection.  These machines are sometimes stand-alone within a parking lot, and because of the large amount of cash held inside, need to be protected from “crash and grab” robberies where a criminal might ram the machine in order to dislodge it and potential haul away the entire machine.  Strong bollards are key in these instances.

Drive-Thru Restaurants

Fast food restaurants with drive up windows must protect several areas.  First is the ordering speaker and menu board.  Damage to either can temporarily close an important source of revenue if the restaurant cannot take drive through orders.  Second is the building and teller window.  Often a turn is needed by a driver to approach the restaurant window to both pay and receive food.  Because the driver must reach out the window for these tasks, he usually attempts to be as close to the building as possible, increase the risk of damage.  Bollards play an important role in protecting both the physical building and the teller window from accidental impact.  These are often large (6” diameter and relatively tall) steel bollards.

Outside Eating Areas

Restaurant owners that chose to maintain outdoor eating areas need to consider the protection provided for their patrons against an errant vehicle.  This is especially critical in areas adjacent to roadways, but is also important when near parking areas.  Simple wrought iron fencing is not enough to prevent potentially life threatening injuries should a drive lose control of his vehicle.  Often due to aesthetic considerations, large concrete planters are chosen to provide protection, but architectural bollards can also be used.  In either case, the protection should be professionally engineered to provide adequate protections from potential risks.

Guard Shacks and Payment Shacks

Common to public parking lots and garages is an entrance and exit guard shack, usually manned, designed to house a single teller.  Because this is usually the only access point for the secured area, it must be protected from both accidental and intentional ramming.  Strong bollards are used throughout these areas to protect both the occupant and adjacent areas where automatic payment machines might be located.  In the case of a post-tensioned concrete structure, surface mounted bollards may be required to avoid damage to structural concrete.  In this case, rebounding bollards may be the best choice as they can provide more strength that a simple steel plate surface mounted bollard.

Automatic Car Washes

The automatic car wash is a special sort of drive through area with delicate equipment that needs to be protected at all cost.  A car wash with damaged equipment often makes no money while waiting for repairs.  Modern car wash facilities have automated drive up teller machines that need bollard protection.  The entrance and exit of the car wash itself also needs to be protected as drivers attempt to align their vehicles to the tracks and exit the wash.  Speeds are generally expected to be slow in these areas, so often surface mounted bollards can be adequate.  Relying on plastic warning cones, however, is not recommended.

Conclusion

Adequate protection for employees, customers, and expensive equipment is of critical importance for businesses that operate drive through areas.  Failure to provide adequate protection can lead to lost revenue and risk injury to people.  In such cases, bollards are an indispensable safety device.

In the next and last installment of this article, we’ll look at a completely new application for bollards, that being in the industrial setting where forklift protection is an important consideration.

Ideal Applications for Traffic Bollards: Parking Lots

This post is part three of a five part article dealing with types of bollards and their ideal uses.  So far I've discussed typical types of bollards, and ideal applications in traffic denial.  Today I’ll discuss typical parking lot bollards, which also includes traffic denial but is more specific to the parking lot itself.

Introduction

There are many assets within a parking lot that need to be protected from the errant driver.  Though parking lot speeds are assumed to be lower than other applications, driver mistakes such as driving forward instead of reverse (or vice versa), contribute to accidental impacts.  The lack of curbing or faded lane striping also contribute to drivers short cutting corners or avoiding driving lanes altogether.   This presents the need to protect certain areas from vehicles, usually cars and light trucks.

Utility Protection

Often shopping centers or other locations require dedicated fire hydrant, gas meters, electrical panels, or other utilities that are located in or near the parking lot.  For obvious reasons, these utilities need to be protected, usually on all sides, from potential accidental impact.  In the gas of natural gas lines, it is of special importance that the area is well protected by strong bollards because of the potential of fire or explosion from impact.

Overhead Signs

Many businesses have overhead signs mounted to large posts near the street.  These posts as well need to be protected from errant vehicles that could potential cause damage significant enough to topple the structure.  Embedded bollards are used when there is danger of catastrophic damage.  However, less expensive surface mounted or rebounding bollards are also used when the danger is less severe and the purpose is to avoid occasion damage.  This is also done at times with large light posts or electronic information signage.

Corners / Entrance Driveways

Malls, grocery stores, and convenience stores are move a great deal of product, and need delivery trucks to frequently re-store their wares.  These trucks need to make wide turns an often accidentally cut corners which can lead to damage to buildings, landscaping, and driveway surfacing.  Lack of curbing within parking lots also contributes to the propensity for drivers to cut lane corners, leading to more potential damage.  Bollards can be used at these corners to prevent these short cutting drivers from damaging important assets.  These can be embedded in the landscaping areas or on the driving surface at the edge of a turn.

Parking Signs

A unique but common application of the bollard is as a protective device for sign posts.  The Americans with Disabilities Act mandates handicap parking spaces and appropriate signage.  Many companies also create preferred parking spaces, such as “employee of the month”, which need signage to identify the space.  However signs in the middle of a parking lot can take many bumps which eventually bend and break the sign.  A bollard can be used in lieu of or in conjunction with a wheel stop to prevent vehicles from impacting the sign post.  The bollard does this through increased conspicuity and a psychological desire not to impact a more foreboding object by the driver.

Recharging Stations

Becoming more popular is the addition of electric vehicle recharging stations which involves especially expensive equipment that must be protected from damage.  This is a similar application to an air fill station that might be found in a gas station.  A couple well placed bollards in front of the equipment is a smart investment.

Access Prevention

A common use of bollards is to prevent access by vehicle to areas intended only for pedestrians.  This could be a small access alley or a restaurant eating location just off the parking lot.  Whenever pedestrian safety is at risk, it is important to adequately protect them from potential run-away vehicles.  A simple decorative gate is simply not enough.  When aesthetics are especially important, architectural bollards are often used, or in lieu of those, large concrete planters can serve the purpose of a bollard if specifically designed for that purpose.

Ice Shacks / Small Out Buildings

It’s not uncommon to find small out building in a strip-mall.  These are often “ice shacks” or small drive-thru building such as an ATM, mailbox, or DVD rental.  Because these areas are in the middle of travel areas of a parking lot, protection around them is desirable and usually occurs in the form of a “picket fence” of bollards completely surrounding the building.

Parking Garages / Public Parking Lots

Public parking garages nearly always have toll shacks or other revenue equipment that require protection from errant vehicles.  Should the station be manned, it is especially important to use strong protective bollards to guard the area.  One case that is unique, however, is the addition of bollards in post-tensioned concrete structures.  The tendons which keep the concrete in compression are extremely important and cannot be damaged by drilling or coring into the structure.  When adding any of the numerous bollards found in a typical parking structure, care must be taken not to damage the tendons.  As well, the bollard should be designed with a shear point either in the anchors used or in the bollard itself, such that upon impact, the structural concrete is not damaged, which could lead to a catastrophic failure of the building.  For this reason, surface mounted bollards are more often used in post-tensioned concrete applications.

Failed Structural Concrete Building

Conclusion

Bollards are used throughout parking lots for numerous reasons.  It’s not uncommon for new parking lot construction to contain scores of bollards and bollards signs throughout various areas.  Proper design and placement of bollard decrease damage to assets and protect pedestrians.

In the next two parts of this article, we’ll look at the following to areas of interest:

Drive-Thru Lanes

Factories and Warehouses

Ideal Applications for Traffic Bollards: Traffic Denial

This post is part two of a five part article dealing with types of bollards and their ideal uses.  Last post discussed four main types of bollards:  embedded, surface-mount, rebounding, and retractable/removable.  In this post and the next three I’ll discuss ideal uses as follows:

1. Traffic Denial (today)
2. Parking Lot Protection
3. Drive-Thru Lanes
4. Factories and Warehouses

Traffic Denial

Although all bollards are used for some sort of traffic denial, this category covers uses that purposely deny access for safety or damage reasons, and are not covered by a more specific use that is described in another area of concern.  In other words, these are general uses.

Security Bollards

This is the grand-daddy application for the traffic denial bollard.  Often K-rated (meaning tested to certain government standards), these bollards are used to absolutely deny access to a building.  This has seen large increase in popularity since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.  Government buildings and other high value targets use engineered bollard systems to prevent high speed, high mass vehicles from causing mass harm initiated by ramming through building fronts.

Building Protection

Bollards are often used to protect a building or structure for damage.  Building corners are a typical place bollards are found, especially when a tight turn by a vehicle can actually impact the building.  Self-Storage facilities often use a large number of bollards to protect buildings from vehicles, and often, trailers.

Building Columns

Closely related are sets of bollards placed around a building or roof column to prevent vehicular impact, which could lead to catastrophic damage should a column fall.  These bollards are often embedded or rebounding type because of the importance of protecting the column.

Store Fronts

Many store owners worried about “crash and grab” robberies, or even just worried about driver mistakes, will line the front of a store with bollards to prevent access.  This application has the added benefit of protecting patrons while they walk in and out of the facility.  The tighter the picket, the more protection offers as a vehicle is likely to impact multiple bollards at once.

Gates

Many security gates and use bollards to protect keypad access panels as well expensive mechanical equipment that operates the gates.  Keypad panels must be closely approached by a driver to enter access codes, and therefore need to be protected from driver mistakes.  Often far ends of a gate system will be protected by bollards to prevent damage to motorized equipment, critical pivots, and weak points that might allow a vehicle to ram a gate.  Sometimes these will be simple surface mounted bollards if the security needed is not great.  A large bollard is usually enough to keep a driver from approaching a sub-division access panel too closely.   An unattended storage facility might need a sturdier bollard to prevent night time theft by ramming a gate.

Pedestrian / Bike Paths

This is an application of traffic denial where the path is not intended for vehicles so bollards are used to block off the entrance or exit of the path.  Pedestrians and bicyclists can pass between a set of bollards, however a car or truck cannot.  These will often be simple embedded wooden bollards, but on a busier street might be a steel bollard.

Gas Pump Protection

This is such a common sight, that you probably don’t even notice the bollards, but virtually every modern gas station protects its pumps from vehicles through the use of bollards or very large cements islands (a form of bollard).  These are often embedded into the concrete, for obvious reasons, as accidents with the highly flammable gasoline delivery device would make for a bad day.

Propane Storage

Many convenience and home improvement stores offer propane bottle exchange programs.  For safety reasons, the propane bottles are stored outside of the store and usually have a picket fence of bollards protecting them.   Again, flammable, possibly explosive devices need to be protected.  I’ve seen both surface mount and embedded steel bollards protecting these areas.  I wouldn’t advise surface mount bollards unless they were strong rebounding bollards, as the safety hazard here can be high.  Local conditions of course would dictate the potential hazards by passing traffic.

Gas Utilities

Utility companies often have meters and valve stacks located near the roadway.  Because natural gas is so flammable, it is important that the area is adequately protected with bollards should there be a reasonable chance of vehicle impact.  These will often be surrounded by a set of four or more bollards, usually steel and embedded deep in the ground.

Conclusion

Traffic denial is the main purpose of a safety bollard.   The applications listed here are some of the more popular uses that one will see in their daily travels.  In the next part of this article, I’ll discuss example specific to parking lots.  Some of those applications overlap with general traffic denial, but are specific to parking lots only.

Bollard Types and Ideal Applications

This post will be part of a five part article which describes traffic bollards types and their typical uses.  In this post, I’ll discuss bollard types and introduce the four main uses for traffic bollards.

Traffic bollards come in four main types:

1. Embedded Bollards
2. Surface Mounted Bollards
3. Rebounding Bollards
4. Retractable / Removable Bollards

Each type is specifically designed for its purpose and has its own benefits and limitations.  Within those groups, there are sub-groups which I will discuss as well.  Also, bollards that fit in those categories can also fall into other sub-categories less dependent on function and more on aesthetics.  Architectural Bollards might be any of the above, but are also designed to also include pleasant or unique shapes.  A Lighted Bollard is simply a bollard with a light source built in either to add conspicuity to the bollard or to light the surrounding area.

Embedded Bollards

 

Embedded Bollards are simply bollards which are embedded deep into the ground.  This is usually for added

strength and security.  Embedded bollards can be made out of any common bollard material, be it steel, concrete or even wood, however the bollard will only be as strong as the foundation in which it is buried.

A steel post filled with concrete and buried very deep within a reinforced concrete foundation will be strong indeed.  On the contrary, a wooden post buried in soft sand or dirt will not provide as much protection.

Costs for this type of bollard can be significant when coring out existing concrete or asphalt surfaces.   It also potentially weakens the foundation, and therefore may not even be appropriate in an application such as a structural concrete parking deck.  On the other hand, when placing a bollard in an unpaved area, this is perhaps the least expensive and simplest approach.

Surface Mounted Bollards

This type of bollard uses some sort of anchor system, usually mechanical, to mount the bollard to the surface.  Although this is an inexpensive method of installation, it also is not a very secure method.  Upon impact, the anchors are often the weakest link and quickly give way, leaving a tilted bollard and damaged foundation.  However, when the purpose of the bollard is more to provide a mere presence or psychological barrier, this type of installation is most cost effective.  It also may be necessary to use shear bolts in a post-tensioned concrete structure in order to prevent impact to the bollard to potentially compromise the building.

The next type of bollard, the rebounding bollard, is often surface mounted, but overcomes the strength and damage issues associated with standard surface mounted bollards.

Rebounding Bollards

A relative newcomer to the bollard field, rebounding bollards use energy absorption technology to provide

the strength of some embedded bollards, with the low installation costs and flexibility of surface mounted bollards.  When a rebounding bollard is impacted, it is allowed to tilt as some mechanism, be it an elastomer or spring system, more slowly absorbs and dissipates the energy of the vehicle.  The bollard then ideally returns to its original position undamaged and fully functional.  Some barriers use advanced polymers which do not yield like metal or concrete might under extreme load.

A further advantage of this type of system is that damage to vehicles, passengers and loads is reduced due to the more gradual absorption of impact energy.  Imagine crashing a vehicle into a large concrete bollard.  Since there is almost no give, it is much like hitting the proverbial brick wall; all energy is immediately felt by the vehicle and its passengers.  With a flexible bollard system, that energy might be dispersed over several hundred milliseconds.  While that doesn't sound like much, it makes a great deal of difference to the peak forces felt.

Some bollards in this type are actually not intended to provide traffic denial capabilities at all.  As such, they are used mainly as sign markers and psychological barriers.  These are extremely prevalent in the United Kingdom.

Retractable / Removable Bollards

Not all applications for bollards are intended to be permanent or always prevent access.  As such, retractable and removable bollards have been designed to allow the owner or a potential traveler access the area normally denied by the bollard.

From Wikipedia.org

This is typically done in one of several ways.  The lowest technology is the pipe-in-a-tube method where a socket is created in the ground.  The bollard can then be removed from the socket when access is to be granted.  This is inexpensive, but requires manual intervention to access the area.

A second way is through the use of pivoting bollards.  A locking pin is used to hold the bollard upright under normal circumstances, and removed to allow the bollard to lay flat when a vehicle is to pass over it.   These bollards are generally flat in shape to allow for vehicle clearance.  Often, the pin is locked in place with a padlock to prevent unauthorized access.

Finally, the most expensive method is the automatic retractable bollard.  Usually hydraulic powered, the bollard actually retracts straight down into the ground and becomes flush with the surface during access.  Actuation of a hydraulic bollard can be by any number of methods, from security guard push button to remote controls and toll booth pay systems.

Uses of Bollards

In the next four parts of this article, I’ll discuss ideal uses for bollards for each of the following areas of concern:

1. Traffic Denial
2. Parking Lot Protection
3. Drive-Thru Lanes
4. Factories and Warehouses

Certain types of bollards I discussed today are more or less appropriate for each application, depending on the required function.  I’ll discuss that in detail for each type.

The Importance of Bollard Signs

Bollard signs have become increasingly prominent sights in both public and private spaces over the past several years.  As cities become more densely packed and the planet grows increasingly urbanized, they will play ever greater roles in public welfare.  This is true for the following reasons:

1. The signage can be prominently displayed, especially when the sign is mounted on top of an existing bollard, such as those found in front of parking spaces.  Such bollards typically rise approximately one meter high, providing a handy perch to mount signs on.  Traffic studies have shown that the addition of less than a meter in signage height makes a significant difference in how quickly motorists perceive public notices.
2. With a removable signage arrangement, signs can be changed at will to meet evolving needs.  This is a simple matter of installing a standard sized metal sleeve in the top of the bollard, as well as a locking mechanism to prevent removal or tampering.
3. Attaching signage to existing pedestrian or traffic bollards protects them from damage by motor vehicles, due to the bollards’ exceptionally sturdy structure.  Low-speed collisions with signs are common in parking areas, due to careless or inattentive drivers.  However, bollards both discourage such accidents (due to their high degree of prominence) and mitigate their effects on important notices when they do occur.
4. Bollards also enhance signage prominence by the fact that they are traditionally painted high-profile colors, such as bright orange and yellow.  This is especially significant in today’s urban environment, where drivers are subjected to ever-increasing competition for their attention from both public and private notices.

Urban planners and safety engineers will face ever-greater challenges in the years to come, as the world’s growing population increasingly flocks to large cities in pursuit of economic opportunities.  Bollard signs have an important role to play in ensuring public safety in these tightly packed environments, and their use should be greatly encouraged.

Find out more about our bollards at www.slowstop.com.

Gaining Peace of Mind with Traffic Bollards

Traffic bollards are the most common bollards found today.  They’re used both to guide traffic and to help ensure public safety.  They accomplish the first objective by their visual presence, which alerts motorists to the need to follow a marked route or to avoid a prohibited area.  They fulfill the second purpose by forming physical barriers, strong enough to stop an errant motorist or out-of-control vehicle from striking passersby.

Traffic bollards are often painted bright yellow or orange to make them more prominent when viewed against the surrounding landscape. To aid nighttime visibility, traffic bollards often have reflective tape affixed to them.

Benefits of Traffic Bollards

1. Increased safety of city foot traffic – Bollards are used in many large urban areas to surround pedestrian islands.  There, they act as physical barriers against misguided and out-of-control vehicles.
2. Traffic calming – Several studies have shown that bollards cause motorists to drive slower and to pay more attention to their surrounding environment.  This leads to fewer vehicular accidents of all types.
3. Improved building access – Traffic bollards are also used to prevent vehicles from blocking entrances to buildings, by making it impossible for drivers to park too close to the entrance or for vehicles to park too closely together.
4. Psychological assurance – The vast majority of vehicle-related accidents are caused by a small minority of drivers, who fail to operate their automobiles in a responsible fashion.  However, traffic bollards act as a physical barrier between them and those who would otherwise be victims of their carelessness.  This allows both pedestrians and conscientious motorists to breathe a little easier as they go about their daily activities.  This enhanced level of mental comfort is far from the least of the many ways in which bollards benefit the public.

Conclusion

Traffic bollards play a vital role in today’s transportation systems.  Their use benefits drivers, pedestrians, and bike riders in innumerable ways.  For these reasons and more, urban planners should use them as integral components for helping to assure the public’s safety, comfort, and peace of mind.

When to Utilize the Safety Bollard

While all bollards are designed to promote public well-being to some extent, a safety bollard is intended specifically for this purpose.  Because of this, its construction is likely to be both permanent in nature and highly resistant to efforts to dislodge it.

While this can be beneficial in many ways, it increases the likelihood of damage to motor vehicles, cyclists, and even pedestrians that strike them.  It can also impede the entrance of emergency responders, such as fire and police units.  Given these facts, safety bollards should only be used when the circumstances warrant.  Such situations include the following:

1. When access to a particular area is likely to be especially hazardous.  A prime example is the typical construction site, where heavy equipment, falling objects, and scattered debris all pose significant dangers to unauthorized persons.  Scenes of recent motor vehicles collisions, places where sinkholes have opened, and areas where industrial accidents have occurred also fall into this category.
2. When ensuring the proper flow of traffic is vital to human safety.  For example, hospital entrances include dedicated lanes that are only meant to be accessed by ambulances.  However, on frequent occasions, misguided motorists drive their vehicles into these areas, preventing emergency vehicles from arriving.  In such locations, the prospect of damage to privately owned vehicles is outweighed by the potential harm caused to the sick and injured.  Hence, using safety bollards is thoroughly justified.
3. When a site is a likely target of terrorists or other criminals.  Nuclear facilities, for example, use safety bollards as well as other impediments to traffic.  This is because tight control of the location’s perimeter is of paramount importance to public safety.  Other locations at high risk of attack include police stations in high-crime areas, military installations, and hydroelectric plants. 

In summary, while a safety bollard is far from an ideal solution in many instances, it can serve a vital role in protecting sensitive areas from unauthorized access.  Use in accordance with sound judgment should be continued.

Find out more about our bollards at www.slowstop.com.

Can the Safety Bollard be Too Sturdy?

Human society can only exist when the need for security is balanced against the importance of allowing free access to facilities and resources.  Lean too far in either direction, and the results can include a police state on one extreme or chaos on the other.  This principle underlies all aspects of civic planning, including the use of the safety bollard.

Safety bollards must protect public safety above all.  However, this task should always be balanced against other considerations, such as allowing access to those with legitimate reasons to be on site.  Additionally, of course, aesthetics play a role in these matters as well.

The tension between security and public appeal in using safety bollards has led to impassioned debates in urban areas such as New York City.  Barriers put in place since the World Trade Center attacks have been criticized for being too utilitarian and foreboding in appearance.

1. Given the delicate balance that civic planners must maintain between these considerations, how sturdy should safety bollards be?  While there are no easy answers to this question, there are some general guidelines to use for specific instances.  These include:
2. Safety bollards should be sufficient to deal with any likely threat.  A 10-meter high stone fence, for instance, would be thoroughly inappropriate at a shopping mall where parking control is the main concern.  On the other hand, a removable “no trespassing” sign mounted atop a flexible bollard would be similarly inadequate at a nuclear power plant.
3. Safety bollards must allow ready access to a location, unless such access poses a credible risk to public well-being.  To illustrate: it’s sensible to erect sturdy bollards to prevent unauthorized entrance to construction sites.  However, such locations must not be so secure as to not allow rapid entrance by fire, medical, or police units in case of emergency.
4. When possible, safety bollards should be erected in such a way as to add to a site’s visual appeal.  For example, bollards can take the form of substantially-sized planters or works of art.  In these forms, they enhance safety and beautify the surrounding area at the same time.

To conclude, so long as the need to weigh security against mobility exists, the issue of safety bollard construction will remain a point of contention.  However, by following common sense principles like those outlined above, these controversies can be minimized.

Find out more about our bollards at www.slowstop.com.

Traffic Bollards Aren’t What They Used to Be

Traffic bollards are used in urban areas to guide traffic and protect human life.  However, despite their benefits, some city governments still resist using them on large scales.  Historically this has been the case in New York City, although this has changed somewhat over the last decade.  Some of the reasons for this reluctance to use bollards include:

• The belief that they may impede those with visual and mobility limitations.
• Concerns over them interfering with snow plowing.
• Worries about damage to vehicles that strike them.

To address these issues, modern traffic bollards are mounted in a number of ways, including:

1. Fixed – where they are intended as permanent fixtures.  In such cases, they are installed in one of two different ways: by drilling bolt holes into the surrounding concrete and securing the bollard to the surface by using inserts fed through the openings or by excavating several feet deep, inserting a bollard of considerable length, then pouring concrete around it to ground level.  The first method is used in areas where access isn’t tightly controlled.  The second is employed at locations where the danger of sabotage or terrorist activities is significant, such as around nuclear power facilities and military installations.
2. Removable – This setup incorporates an underground sleeve or other type of mounting that is set permanently in place.  There is a gap at the top that allows the easy installation and removal of bollards for temporary purposes.  Sometimes a locking mechanism is employed as well.  These bollards are used at spots where access control needs vary at different times.
3. Retractable – Sometimes bollards are needed on a regular basis at a location, but only at specific times of the day, week, or month.  In such cases, retractable models are installed.  The mechanism that raises and lowers these bollards may either be hydraulic or electrically driven; often a backup power source is included onsite so that the unit remains operable even if the area is suffering an electricity blackout.

The trend away from seeing traffic bollards only as permanent, immovable objects allows them to be used in new ways, all of which enhance public safety.  So, it’s true that bollards aren’t what they used to be.  In fact, they’re better than ever before.

Find out more about our bollards at www.slowstop.com.

How Pedestrian Bollards Protect Drivers and Pedestrians: Examples from New York City

Pedestrian Bollards are closely related to traffic safety bollards in design and purpose, with the chief difference being that they direct foot, as opposed to motorized, traffic.  Nonetheless, they perform an important function in promoting public safety, by maintaining a buffer zone between pedestrians and motorized vehicles.

A powerful example of the role that pedestrian bollards can play is found in New York City.  While it’s a great metropolis, NYC has traditionally been hesitant to use bollards to protect its millions of walkers.  This is largely responsible for the high incidents of pedestrian-vehicle accidents that occur within the city annually.  A recent report by New York City’s Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) mentions 7,000 injuries and fatalities caused by such collisions.

In response, the NYCDOT launched an initiative in 2008 to make the city safer for those on foot.  Many of the measures involve the use of bollards.  Here are some of the many examples.

1. Development of bicycle paths connecting all five boroughs, to encourage the use of bikes as an alternative means of transportation.  Bollards have been installed on many of these paths, to provide a physical barrier against drivers intruding on the cycle routes.  This measure has had tangible results.
2. The redesign of public spaces to create designated zones for foot, horse, and bicycle traffic.  One splendid example of this measure’s success is the revamping of Park Circle in Brooklyn, as seen in this report.  It includes several images of how bollards have been used successfully, along with concrete curbs and lane markings, to create safe zones for non-vehicular traffic.
3. A special emphasis on the Broadway areas of Times and Herald squares, including the use of bollards to establish pedestrian plazas and “refuge spaces,” seen clearly in this video.  The resulting improvements to public safety have been dramatic.

The successes enjoyed by the NYCDOT in using pedestrian bollards are clear evidence of their effectiveness.  As the world becomes ever more urbanized, the role of bollards in guarding public safety will only increase.

Find out more about our bollards at www.slowstop.com.