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                Safety Eligibility Letter WZ-104
  
  **Hardware Type:**
            Work Zone Devices
                          **Code:**
            WZ-104
                          **Date:**
            01/11/2002
                          **Testing Criteria:**
            NCHRP 350
                          **Manufacturer:**
            PMG Lobo Limited
                          **Device Description:**
            Sentinel Type III Plastic Panel Barricade 10-24-01
                          **View PDF:**
            wz104.pdf (114.54 KB)
    
    Safety Eligibility Letter WZ-104
            
            			
            DOT logoU.S. Departmentof Transportation**Federal Highway Administration**
                   	400 Seventh St., S.W.Washington, D.C.  20590

       	    Refer To: HSA-10/WZ-104Mr. Donald D. Diecks
President
PMG Limited Lobo
POBox 552
Chagrin Falls, OH  44022-0552
            Dear Mr. Diecks:
            Thank you for your letter of  October 24 requesting Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) acceptance of your  company’s Sentinel Type III Plastic Panel Barricade as a crashworthy  traffic control device for use in work zones on the National Highway System  (NHS). Accompanying your letter was a  report of crash testing conducted by E-Tech Testing Services and a video of the  tests. You requested that we find these  devices acceptable for use on the National Highway System under the provisions  of National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350  “Recommended Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway  Features.” Mr. Nicholas Artimovich of my  office gave you an initial response via fax on November 5, 2001, and asked for  additional information which you subsequently provided.
            **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  device follows:
            The Sentinel Type III barricade  is a compact lightweight device featuring blow molded high density polyethylene  upper and lower supports and hollow extruded plastic panels. The upper and lower supports are joined  together with a simple slip-fit connection.  The 210 mm high by 
              1219 mm long barricade panels are  made from a specially formulated polyolefin plastic and surfaced with  reflective sheeting. Each of the three  panels is secured to the uprights with four 9.5 mm diameter by 76.2 mm long  ASTM A307 hex bolts and nuts with plain washers front and back. The mass of each test article was 13.4  kg. Each was placed on a flat, clean,  and dry asphalt surface with three 15.9 kg sandbags placed on the lower support  legs of each barricade for ballast. The  complete devices as tested are shown in the enclosed drawings for reference.
          **Testing**
                Full-scale automobile testing was  conducted on your company’s devices. Two  stand-alone examples of the device were tested in tandem, one head-on and the  next placed six meters downstream turned at 90 degrees, as called for in our  guidance memoranda. The crash test is  summarized in the table below:
Test Number
                  38-8707-001 , NCHRP Test 3-71Test Article
                  Sentinel Type III Plastic Panel    BarricadeHeight to Top of Barricade
                  1524 mm (60 inches)Flags or lights
                  noneTest Article Mass (each)
                  13.4 kgVehicle Inertial Mass
                  824 kgImpact Speed, Head-on
                  101.8 km/hrImpact Speed, 90 Deg.
                  97.7 km/hrVelocity Change, Head-on
                  1.14 m/secVelocity Change, 90 deg.
                  1.14 m/secVehicle crush
                  Slight hood damageOccupant Compart. Intrusion
                  NoneWindshield Damage
                  None - only glancing contact    with first test article**Findings**
          When struck the upper portions of  the barricades came out of the base sections and were knocked ahead of the  vehicle. Damage was limited to dents and  scrapes in the hood. There did not appear to be any potential for  passenger compartment intrusion. 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 which 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-104 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  Sentinel Type III Plastic Panel 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,
                   	  
                        Michael L. HalladayActing Program Manager, SafetyEnclosure   
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