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                Safety Eligibility Letter WZ-136
  
  **Hardware Type:**
            Work Zone Devices
                          **Code:**
            WZ-136
                          **Date:**
            01/29/2003
                          **Testing Criteria:**
            NCHRP 350
                          **Manufacturer:**
            United Rentals
                          **Device Description:**
            Type III Barricade with solid Plastic Rails
                          **View PDF:**
            wz136.pdf (960.66 KB)
    
    



January 29, 2003
Refer to: HSA-10/WZ-136
Mr.
Henry Ross
United
Rentals Highway Technologies
880
North Addison Road
P.O.
Box 7050
Villa
Park, Illinois 60181-7050
Dear Mr. Ross:
Thank you for your July 24,
2002, letter that you hand delivered to Mr. Nicholas Artimovich of my office on
October 23, 2002.  In that letter you
are requesting Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) acceptance of your company's 8-foot wide Type III barricades using 0.450-inch
solid polyethylene plastic panels and X-tube plastic uprights as crashworthy traffic control devices for use in work zones on the
National Highway System (NHS). 
Accompanying your letter was a summary report of crash testing conducted
by E-Tech Testing Services and a CD with photos of the tests. You requested
that we find these devices acceptable for use on the NHS under the provisions
of National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350
“Recommended Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway
Features.”
Introduction
The FHWA guidance on crash
testing of work zone traffic control devices is contained in two
memoranda.  The first, dated July 25,
1997, titled “INFORMATION: Identifying Acceptable Highway Safety
Features”, established four categories of work zone devices: Category I devices
were those lightweight devices which could be self-certified by the vendor,
Category II devices were other lightweight devices which needed individual
crash testing, Category III devices were barriers and other fixed or massive
devices also needing crash testing, and Category IV devices were trailer
mounted lighted signs, arrow panels, etc. The second guidance memorandum was issued on August 28, 1998, and is
titled “INFORMATION:
Crash Tested Work Zone Traffic Control Devices.” This later memorandum lists devices that are acceptable under
Categories I, II, and III.
A brief description of the
devices follows:
The frame of the barricade
consists of 44.5 mm (1.75 inch) square plastic X-tube uprights. The skids are 2 PPF U-channel posts. The socket for supporting the uprights is a
6-inch long piece of 50.8 mm (2 inch) perforated square steel tube welded to a
piece of 7 ga flat steel. The flat
steel piece is drilled to accommodate bolts used to attach the socket to the
skid. The uprights are simply inserted into the
socket. The barricade rails measured
2438 mm long by 203 mm high by 11.4 mm thick (8 feet by 8
inches x 0.14 inch) polyethylene board. The entire barricade (without ballast or lights)
weighs 32.8 kg (72.3 pounds.)  Each
barricade also had two lightweight warning lights mounted to the top of the
upright.
Testing
Full-scale automobile testing
was conducted on your company's devices.  Two stand-alone examples of the device were
tested in separate tests, one head-on and one turned at 90 degrees, as
permitted in our guidance memoranda. 
The complete device as tested is shown in Enclosure 1.
The crash test is summarized
in the table below:
Test
  Number
05-7210-020
05-7210-021Test
  Article Orientation
Head on
90 degreesHeight
  to Top Rail
1570 mm (61.8 inches)Height
  to Top of Light
1860 mm (73.19 inches)Flags
  or lights
Two lightweight lights, one on each uprightTest
  Article Mass (each)
32.8 kg (72.3 pounds) plus lights, ballastVehicle
  inertial mass
813 kg
813 kgImpact
  Speed
102.5 km/h
100.4 km/hVelocity
  Change
2.2 m/s
1.6 m/sVehiclecrush
Denting
Denting,minorroofcrushOccupant Compart.Intrusion
None
Windshield/roof deformationWindshield
  Damage
Moderate
Moderate to severe** In this end-on test the top
two rails impacted the windshield causing moderate deformation and
cracking.  One of the lights hit in such
a manner as to snag briefly on the windshield trim and causes a hole through
the glass near the roofline.  This
dime-sized hole did not penetrate the inside metal rim of the windshield
mount.  Although this nominally violates
the FHWA windshield damage criteria for work zone devices, we have carefully
considered the implications. This barricade is similar in many respects to
other Type III barricades that have been successfully tested.  Because of a unique occurrence, it caused a
hole in this test.
Findings
Damage was limited to moderate to severe cracking of the
windshield and minor sheet metal damage to the hood and roof.  There did not appear to be a potential for
penetration of the occupant compartment. 
With the exception noted above, the results of the testing met the FHWA
requirements and, therefore, the devices described above and shown in the
enclosed drawings for reference are acceptable for use on the NHS under the
range of conditions tested, when proposed by a State.
Please note the following
standard provisions that apply to FHWA letters of acceptance:
Our acceptance is
limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the devices and does not
cover their structural features, nor conformity with the Manual on Uniform
Traffic Control Devices.
Any changes that may
adversely influence the crashworthiness of the device will require a new
acceptance letter.
Should the FHWA discover
that the qualification testing was flawed, that in-service performance reveals
unacceptable safety problems, or that the device being marketed is
significantly different from the version that was crash tested, it reserves the
right to modify or revoke its acceptance.
You will be expected to
supply potential users with sufficient information on design and installation
requirements to ensure proper performance.
You will be expected to
certify to potential users that the hardware furnished has essentially the same
chemistry, mechanical properties, and geometry as that submitted for
acceptance, and that they will meet the crashworthiness requirements of FHWA
and NCHRP Report 350.
To prevent
misunderstanding by others, this letter of acceptance, designated as number
WZ-136 shall not be reproduced except in full. 
This letter, and the test documentation upon which this letter is based,
is public information.  All such letters
and documentation may be reviewed at our office upon request.
The United Rentals
traffic control devices may include patented components and if so are
considered "proprietary." The
use of proprietary work zone traffic control devices in Federal-aid projects is
generally of a temporary nature. They
are selected by the contractor for use as needed and removed upon completion of
the project. Under such conditions they
can be presumed to meet requirement "a" given below for the use of
proprietary products on Federal-aid projects. On the other hand, if proprietary devices are specified for use on
Federal-aid projects, except exempt, non-NHS projects, they: (a) must be supplied through
competitive bidding with equally suitable unpatented items; (b) the highway agency must certify that they are
essential for synchronization with existing highway facilities or that no
equally suitable alternative exists or; (c) they must be used for research or for a distinctive type of
construction on relatively short sections of road for experimental
purposes.  Our regulations concerning
proprietary products are contained in Title 23, Code of Federal Regulations,
Section 635.411, a copy of which is enclosed.Sincerely
yours,
Harry W. Taylor,
Acting
Director, Office of Safety Design
Enclosure U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

**Federal Highway Administration**

1200 NEW JERSEY AVENUE, SE

WASHINGTON, DC 20590

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