How useful are guardrails and safety bollards?

Guard rail, as the name implies guards something. In an industrial setting, guardrail protects machinery that provides an efficient and safe working environment. Guardrails protect people. Heavy material handling vehicles are common in industries. Guardrails can protect people from any danger, even on the roads.

Benefits of highway guardrails

• Longevity: Guardrails have a longer life and don’t require replacement soon. It can stay for years and needs a replacement only when it wears out.

• Fast and easy installation: Guardrails are easy to install, but professionals have to handle the installation part. Uniform cutting of guardrails can help in quicker installation.

• Corrugated strength: Guardrails are strong and won’t collapse without any harsh impact. Once they get installed, they can withstand different types of forces and actions that cause stress on their design.

Different types of guardrails

Have a look at few of the guardrails available for different purposes:

• Bolted guardrail: It provides an inexpensive, and easy to see protective barrier for people and equipment.

• Lift out guardrail: They help in easy removal of rail sections for convenient access to equipment. These guardrails are visible in an industrial setup.

While guardrails offer protection on a macro level, safety bollards provide micro-level protection. Safety bollard can prevent damage to machinery and equipment in an industrial setup. They are also meant to be visual aids that guide traffic and restrict access for vehicles in particular areas.

 A pipe safety bollard can have tighter curves than a guardrail as it can allow enough room for a person on foot to pass around them. Different safety bollards exist for a wide range of applications outside of industrial zones.

Uses of safety bollards

• Offers security and protection: Safety bollards are installed for safety, crash prevention and shock absorption. If a driver loses control and crashes, safety bollards can reduce the impact of the collision. Installing safety bollards can also prevent damage to property.

• Visual barrier: These serve as barriers in different ways. They are useful in parking lots and warehouses where vehicles are continuously on the move. Installing bollards in parking lots can avoid drivers speeding in and crashing.

• Architectural ornamentation: Aside from protecting people and property, safety bollards can serve as an ornamental purpose. However, whether used indoors or outdoors, these should be durable.

• Security for buildings and infrastructure: Buildings that have safety bollards installed can avoid major crashes of vehicles. The security of buildings like banks, schools, offices etc. can be drastically improved by installing bollards.
• Pedestrian safety: Unsafe crosswalks, crowded streets or poor traffic signals may cause fatal crashes that can be a threat to the lives of people. Having bollards installed ensures the safety of pedestrians from being injured by vehicles crashing into them.

Bollards merely don’t define boundaries or protect buildings and infrastructure. They are also an inevitable part of road safety. Heavy-duty bollards, if installed correctly, can increase traffic safety while not impacting the visual appearance of the site. They help alert drivers on narrow roads and high curbs to manage vehicle flow in high traffic roads. Bollards can also prevent vehicles from hitting the sidewalk, injuring or killing pedestrians