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                Safety Eligibility Letter WZ-120
  
  **Hardware Type:**
            Work Zone Devices
                          **Code:**
            WZ-120
                          **Date:**
            06/03/2002
                          **Testing Criteria:**
            NCHRP 350
                          **Manufacturer:**
            NES Work Safe
                          **Device Description:**
            Type III Barricade
                          **View PDF:**
            wz120.pdf (331.1 KB)
    
    
Refer 
 to: HSA-10/WZ-120
Mr. Matthew Mooney
 Operational Administrator
 NES Work Safe2610 Sanford AvenueGrandville, Michigan 49418
Dear 
 Mr. Mooney:
Thank you for your letters of January 
 30 and February 6, 2002, requesting Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) acceptance 
 of your company=s Type III Barricade 
 as a crashworthy traffic control devices for use in work zones on the National 
 Highway System (NHS). Accompanying your letter were drawings and a description 
 of your barricades, comparing them to the generic Type III barricades distributed 
 by FHWA. 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." On March 20, 2002, Mr. Nicholas Artimovich of my office contacted 
 you via email with comments regarding the acceptability of your design. You 
 responded to those comments with a drawing transmitted with your June 
 3, 2002, email message to Mr. Artimovich.
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 AINFORMATION: 
 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 device follows:
The NES WorkSafe Type III barricade is 
 comparable to the generic barricade accepted by FHWA Acceptance Letter WZ-54 
 on December 15, 2000. It consists of perforated square steel tube uprights, 
 12-gage wall thickness, measuring 1 3/4 inches on a side. The horizontal legs 
 are 2 x 2 angles, 48 to 72 inches 
 long, and have a 2 x 2 inch steel tube welded to the center to support the uprights. 
 The 8-foot long plywood panels are bolted to the uprights with 3/8 
 inch x 3-inch-16 hex cap bolts and 1-1⁄2 inch flat washers. The lightweight warning 
 lights are attached to the back of the uprights using 1⁄2 inch x 4 inches-16 zinc 
 coated steel half moon light bolts with anti-theft cups. The bolts pass through 
 the plywood rails also. The overall heights of the barricade are 60 inches 
 to the top of the top rail and 68 inches to the top of the light.
Findings
Because this barricade is nearly identical 
 to the successfully crash-tested barricade accepted by the FHWA it can be expected 
 to perform in a similar manner. Therefore, the device 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-120 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 NES Work Safe Type III Barricade 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,
Carol H. Jacoby, P.E.
Director, Office of Safety 
 Design
Enclosure U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

**Federal Highway Administration**

1200 NEW JERSEY AVENUE, SE

WASHINGTON, DC 20590

202-366-4000Subscribe to email updates
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