Scrap Tires | Scrap Tire News | Archived Article

Increasingly, America's "ribbon of highways from California to the New York Islands" is under construction.

Because this is so, the need for safer worksites and safer roads is at an all time high. To meet the challenge, Plastics Safety Systems, Inc. plays "zone defense" with a line of highway safety products for diverting traffic, identifying work areas and alerting motorists to dangerous areas and hazardous conditions.

At the top of the lineup, PSS' patented Lifeguard™ drum utilizes a recycled tire to weigh it down and to create a "break away" Channelizer, which if hit by a vehicle, will allow the motorist to prevent injury to himself or the vehicle.

"Traffic channelizers need to be weighed down in high-speed work zones so that they are not blown around by passing motorists," PSS Marketing Manager Chuck Bailey said. Independent testing has shown that Lifeguard's™ rubber (tire) collars grip the road better than plastic bases and its low center of gravity makes it hard to tip over.

Plastic Safety Systems also manufacturers the Navigator™ Channelizer which is taller (42") than conventional traffic cones for increased visibility. The Navigator base consists of a molded solid rubber base that contains recycled rubber. The company also distributes safety fencing, parking blocks and speed bumps, and temporary roll-up signs and sign stands.

Recently, all of Plastic Safety Systems devices were precertified and recognized as compliant for Type I devices under the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) NCHRP - 350 Guidance, which means when a motorist hits the device, there is no danger of that device penetrating the vehicle and harming the motorist. NCHRP-350 is a plan being implemented by the FHWA to make all traffic devices "crashworthy" by the year 2000.

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