U.S. Department 

of Transportation 

Federal Highway 

Administration 

June 27, 2022 

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE 

Washington, D.C. 20590 

In Reply Refer To: 

HSST-1/WZ-438 

Kevin Harrison 

Eastern Metal of Elmira, Inc. 

1430 Sullivan Street 

Elmira NY 14901 

USA 

Dear Mr. Harrison: 

We received your correspondence of April 21, 2021 requesting issuance of a reimbursement 

eligibility letter under the Federal-aid highway program for the roadside safety system, device, 

design, product, or hardware (collectively “device”) described below. This letter is assigned 

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) control number WZ-438. 

ELIGIBILITY LETTERS 

The FHWA issues Federal-aid reimbursement eligibility letters for new roadside safety devices 

that are crash tested in accordance with the industry standard of the American Association of 

State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware 

(MASH). 

FHWA, the Department of Transportation, and the United States (government) do not regulate 

roadside safety devices, crash test facilities, or the manufacturing industry. Issuance of 

eligibility letters is discretionary and provided only as a service to the states. FHWA may, at its 

discretion, decline to issue, revise, or rescind an eligibility letter. Eligibility letters are only 

issued by the FHWA headquarters Office of Safety. 

Eligibility letters are issued only as notice to the states that a device is eligible for reimbursement 

under the Federal-aid highway program. They do not establish approval or certification for any 

other purpose. Issuance of an eligibility letter is not a prerequisite or requirement for state 

transportation agencies seeking to use Federal-aid funds for roadside safety devices. State 

agencies may use a device for which an eligibility letter has not been issued and seek Federal-aid 

reimbursement. 

FEDERAL-AID REIMBURSEMENT 

The request for issuance of this letter certified the device was crash tested in accordance with the 

industry standard of AASHTO’s MASH. This eligibility letter is based on that certification and 

the material offered in support of its issuance. The device described below is eligible for 

reimbursement under the Federal-aid highway program. 

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Name of system: Apex Dual Recoil Max w/ Roll-Up Sign 

Type of system: Work Zone Sign Stand 

Test Level: Test Level 3 

Testing conducted by: Calspan Corporation 

Date of request: April 21, 2021 

Information about the device, including material such as the eligibility request, crash test reports, 

drawings, or images are included in one or more attachment(s) to this letter. 

Eligibility letter WZ-438 is inapplicable to devices, optional equipment, alternate materials, or 

other features that were not crash tested in accordance with AASHTO’s MASH. 

This letter is issued only for the subject device as crash tested under AASHTO’s MASH. Later 

modification(s) of the device are not eligible for Federal-aid reimbursement under this letter. 

Notice of later modification(s) should be given to transportation agencies, facility owners, and 

operators (collectively “agencies”). 

Agencies should be provided appropriate information about the device’s design, installation, 

maintenance, materials, and mechanical properties. 

Issuance of this letter is discretionary, and it may be revised or rescinded at FHWA’s discretion. 

This letter is not a determination of compliance with the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control 

Devices for Streets and Highways (MUTCD) or ownership of any intellectual property rights. 

This eligibility letter is not a determination by the government that a crash involving the subject 

device will result in any particular outcome. It is limited to only the device’s eligibility for 

Federal-aid reimbursement. 

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 

Issuance of this eligibility letter does not convey property rights of any sort nor any exclusive 

privilege. This letter is not authorization or consent by the government for the use, manufacture, 

or sale of any patented or proprietary system, device, design, product, or hardware for which the 

requester is not the patent owner. Eligibility letters are not an expression of any view, position, 

or determination by the government as to the validity, scope, or ownership of any intellectual 

property rights to a specific device. These letters do not grant, impute, suggest, or otherwise 

establish any ownership, distribution, or licensing rights to the requester. The government 

expresses no opinion about the intellectual property rights relating to any device for which this or 

any other eligibility letter is issued. 

PUBLIC DISCLOSURE 

To prevent any misunderstanding, and as discussed above, this eligibility letter is assigned 

FHWA control number WZ-438. It should only be reproduced in full with its attachment(s). 

This letter and the material offered by the requester supporting its issuance is public information. 

All eligibility letters and supporting material are subject to public disclosure under the Freedom 

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of Information Act (FOIA). Eligibility letters are available to the public at 

https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/roadway_dept/countermeasures/reduce_crash_severity/. 

If you have any questions please contact Aimee Zhang at Aimee.Zhang@dot.gov. 

Sincerely, 

Michael S. Griffith 

Director, Office of Safety Technologies 

Office of Safety 

Enclosures 

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Page 1 of 5 

Request for Federal Aid Reimbursement Eligibility

of Highway Safety Hardware 

Submitter 

Date of Request: April 21,2021 New Resubmission 

Name: KevinHarrison 

Company: Eastern Metal ofElmira,Inc. 

Address: 1430SullivanStreet Elmira,NY 14901 

Country: USA 

To: Michael S. Griffith, Director 

FHWA, Office of Safety Technologies 

I request the following devices be considered eligible for reimbursement under the Federal-aid 

highway program. 

Device&TestingCriterion -Enter from right to left starting withTest Level 

SystemType SubmissionType DeviceName / Variant TestingCriterion Test 

Level 

'WZ':CrashWorthyWorkZon PhysicalCrashTesting 

Engineering Analysis 

ApexDualRecoil Max AASHTOMASH TL3 

! - ! - ! ! - ! - ! 

By submitting this request for review and evaluation by the Federal Highway Administration, I certify 

that the product(s) was (were) tested in conformity with the AASHTO Manual for Assessing Safety 

Hardware and that the evaluation results meet the appropriate evaluation criteria in the MASH. 

Individual or Organization responsible for the product: 

Contact Name: KevinHarrison SameasSubmitter 

CompanyName: Eastern Metal ofElmira,Inc. SameasSubmitter 

Address: 1430SullivanStreet Elmira,NY 14901 SameasSubmitter 

Country: USA SameasSubmitter 

Enter below all disclosures of financial interests as required by the FHWA `Federal-Aid Reimbursement 

Eligibility Process for Safety Hardware Devices' document. 

Eastern Metal ofElmira,Inc.andCalspanCorporationshare no financial interests between the two organizations. 

This includes noshared financial interest but not limited to: 

i.Compensation including wages,salaries,commissions,professional fees,or feesfor businessreferrals 

iii.Research funding or other forms of researchsupport; 

iv.Patents,copyrights, licenses,and other intellectual property interests; 

vi.Businessownership and investment interest s; 
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PRODUCT DESCRIPTION 

New Hardware or 

Significant Modification 

Modification to 

Existing Hardware 

TheApex DualRecoil Max is a 48” collapsible roll-upsign attached to a dual- spring collapsible sign stand. 

The sign stand and the roll-up sign can be disassembled and folded-up into a compact package for storage 

and transport. The attachments were set at a bottom height of 60” from the ground to be fully displayed as 

would be the installed position. The 48” roll up sign attaches to thesign stand by2 rigidsign brackets. A 

foldable flag mechanism is used to displaya set of warning flags.The flag mechanism is pivotally attached to 

the vertical cross-brace member. The combination sign and sign stand assembly can be quickly and readily 

assembled to its display condition and,correspondingly, disassembled and folded-up to its storage and 

transport condition. 

The leg releasesystem on thesign standsare readilyadjustable for varying sign heights and/or uneven terrain. 

The telescoping legs are made of aluminum and assembled to thesteelsignstand base via standard nutsand 

bolts.The legs have either pull-pinsor kick lever releasesfor quick and efficient releasing from the fold up 

position. The folded dimensions are 11.5” x 8” x 85.5” and weighs42 lbs. without the roll-up sign attached. 

Open dimensions are 57” x 122” x 129.5”. Two Sand Bags were added to the base for testing. 

CRASH TESTING 

Bysignature below, theEngineer affiliated with the testing laboratory,agrees in support of thissubmission that 

all of the critical and relevant crash tests for this device listed above were conducted to meet the MASH test 

criteria. The Engineer has determined that no other crash tests are necessary to determine the device meets 

the MASHcriteria. 

Engineer Name: MarkParisi 

EngineerSignature: 

Address: 

Country: 

4455GeneseeStreet,Cheektowaga,NY14225 

USA 

Same asSubmitter 

Same asSubmitter 

A brief description of each crash test and its result: 

Help 

Help 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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RequiredTest 

Number 

Narrative 

Description 

Evaluation 

Results 

3-70(1100C) 

Designated to evaluate theability of asmall 

vehicle to activateany breakaway, fracture, 

or yielding mechanism. Is considered 

optional for work zone traffic control 

weighting less than 220 lb (100 kg) 

Non-Relevant Test, not conducted 
 

 

 

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RequiredTest 

Number 

Narrative 

Description 

Evaluation 

Results 

3-71(1100C) 

For this test, two Apex DualRecoil Max work 

zone signs were impacted. The first test 

article was aligned at 0°and thesecond 

test article was aligned at 90° to the 

impacting vehicle's direction of travel. This 

test is intended to evaluate the sign 

stand's behavior when impacted. The 

primary evaluation is based on intrusion 

into the occupant compartment, 

windshield damage, and vehicle stability. 

Lightweight devicessuch as thissign stand 

cannot cause sufficient velocity change 

that would result in exceeding occupant 

risk criteria limits. ThereforeTest 71 was 

conducted without instrumentation for 

evaluating occupant risk values OIVand 

RA per MASH test description. 

The test was conducted using a 

commerciallyavailable 2014KiaRio with a 

test inertia massof 2,445 lbs(1,109 kg). 

The test vehicle impacted the first sign 

stand (orientated at 0°) at a velocity of 63.4 

mph (102.0km/hr). Upon impact the roll-up 

sign released from the sign support and 

flew over the roof of the vehicle. The sign 

stand impacted the side of the roof on the 

vehicle. 

The test vehicle continued along its path 

and impacted the second sign stand 

(oriented at 90°) at a velocity of 60.1mph 

(96.7 km/ hr).Upon impact the roll-upsign 

released from the sign support and 

continued over the roof of the vehicle, 

making minimal contact with the 

windshield. The sign stand impacted the 

front bumper, but did not make contact 

with the windshield or roof. The test 

vehicle's occupant compartment was not 

penetrated by the test articlesand there 

wasNOmeasurablecab deformation. 

Debris from the test articles did not block 

the driver's vision. The vehicle remained 

upright and did not exceed 75°roll and pitch 

throughout the test. The vehicle did not 

leave its lane and its trajectory was stable 

after bothsign stands were impacted. 

The Impact Points were within the spec 

of 1/4 offset +/- 6".

TESTRESULT= PASS 
 

 

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3-72(2270P) 

For this test, two Apex DualRecoil Max work 

zone signs were impacted . The first test 

article was aligned at 0°and thesecond 

test article was aligned at 90° to the test 

vehicle's direction of travel. This test is 

intended to evaluate the sign stand's 

behavior when impacted . The primary 

evaluation is based on intrusion into the 

occupant compartment, windshield 

damage, and vehicle stability. Lightweight 

devices such as this sign stand cannot 

cause sufficient velocity change that 

would result in exceeding occupant risk 

criteria limit s. ThereforeTest 72 was 

conducted without instrumentation for 

evaluating occupant risk values OIV and 

RA per MASH test description . 

The test was conducted using a 

commerciallyavailable 2009Ram 1500 

PickupTruck with a test inertia mass of 

5,022 lbs.(2,278kg). 

The test vehicle impacted the first sign 

stand (orientated at 0°) at a velocity of 

63.0 mph (101.4 km/hr). Upon impact the 

roll-upsign remained on thesign support 

and continued over the vehicle making 

minimal contact with the roof. 

The test vehicle continued along its path 

and impacted the second sign stand 

(oriented at 90°) at a velocity of 61.8 mph 

(99.5 km/ hr). Upon impact the roll-up sign 

released from the sign support and 

continued over the top of the vehicle. The 

sign stand made contact with and dented 

the roof of the vehicle. The test vehicle's 

occupant compartment wasnot penetrated 

by the test articles, but there was a 

measurable cab deformation of 0.25in. 

within the roof, which is below the 

maximum allowance of 4.0 in. 

Debrisfrom the test article did not causea 

hazard to the driver 's vision. The vehicle 

remained upright and did not exceed 75° 

roll and pitch through out the test. The 

vehicle did not leave its lane and its 

trajectory was stableafter bothsign stands 

were impacted . 

The Impact Points were within the spec 

of 1/4 offset +/- 6".

TESTRESULT= PASS 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Full Scale Crash Testing was done in compliance with MASH by the following accredited crash test 

laboratory (cite the laboratory’s accreditation status as noted in the crash test reports.): 

Laboratory Name: CalspanCorporation 

LaboratorySignature: 

Address: 4455GeneseeStreet Cheektowaga,NY14225 SameasSubmitter 

Country: USA SameasSubmitter 

Accreditation Certificate 

Number and Dates of current 

Accreditation period : 

L20-602 

December 31,2022 

SubmitterSignature*: 

ATTACHMENTS 

Attach to this form: 

1) Additional disclosures of related financial interest as indicated above. 

2) A copy of the full test report, video, and a Test Data Summary Sheet for each test conducted in 

support of this request. 

3) A drawing or drawings of the device(s) that conform to the Task Force-13 Drawing Specifications 

[Hardware Guide Drawing Standards]. For proprietary products, a single isometric line drawing is 

usually acceptable to illustrate the product, with detailed specifications, intended use, and contact 

information provided on the reverse. Additional drawings (not in TF-13 format) showing details that 

are relevant to understanding the dimensions and performance of the device should also be submitted 

to facilitate our review. 

FHWA Official Business Only: 

Eligibility Letter 

Number Date Key Words 
 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 4 

MASH TEST 3-71 SUMMARY 

Eastern Metal Apex Dual Recoil Max Test Article: Project No. BR0045 

Test Program MASH 3-71 : Test Date: 03/8/2021 

 

PLAN VIEW 

 

SEQUENTIAL PHOTOGRAPHS 

0° Orientation Side View 1 90° Orientation Side view 2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I 

SECTION 4... (CONTINUED) 

MASHTEST 3-71SUMMARY 

Test Article: 

Test Program: 

Eastern Metal Apex Dual Recoil Max 

MASH 3-71 

SUMMARY TABLE 

Project No. 

Test Date: 

BR0045 

03/8/2021 

GENERAL INFORMATION IMPACT CONDITIONS 

TEST AGENCY Calspan Corporation IMPACT VELOCITY(0°) 63.4 mph (102. km/h) 

TEST NUMBER Cal BR0045 IMPACT VELOCITY (90°) 60.1 mph (96.7 km/h) 

TEST DESIGNATION 3-71 IMPACT SEVERITY (0°) 426.14 kJ 

TEST DATE 3/8/2021 IMPACT SEVERITY (90°) 426.14 kJ 

IMPACT LOCATION (0 DEG) 472 mm from Centerline to Driver 

IMPACT LOCATION (90 DEG) 530 mm from Centerline to Passenger 

TEST ARTICLE EXIT CONDITIONS 

NAME / MODEL Apex Dual 

Recoil Max 

EXIT VELOCITY (0°) 63.4 mph (99.8 km/h) 

TYPE Work-Zone Traffic Control Device EXIT VELOCITY (90°) 60.1 mph (96.7 km/h) 

KEY ELEMENTS Sign Stand, Roll up Sign, Metal Base FINAL RESTING POSITION 180 ft. downstream 

OVERALL HEIGHT 91 in. (2311.4 mm) VEHICLE STABILITY Satisfactory 

OVERALL WIDTH 80 in. (2032 mm) VEHICLE SNAGGING None 

BASE WEIGHT 42 lbs. (19.05 kg) VEHICLE POCKETING None 

SIGN WEIGHT < 5 lbs. (2.27 kg) OCCUPANT RISK VALUES 1 

ROAD SURFACE Asphalt OCCUPANT IMPACT 

VELOCITY 

Longitudinal N/A 

TEST VEHICLE Lateral N/A 

TYPE / DESIGNATION 1100C RIDEDOWN 

ACCELERATION 

Longitudinal N/A 

YEAR , MAKE AND MODEL 2014 Kia Rio Lateral N/A 

CURB MASS 2,526.5 lbs. (1,146 kg) 

TEST ARTICLE POST-IMPACT 

ARTICLE DAMAGE Base Deformation/Upper separation 

TEST INERTIAL MASS 2,444.93 lbs. (1,109 kg) 

VEHICLE DAMAGE 

VEHICLE DAMAGE SCALE FL-1 ; FR-2 

GROSS STATIC MASS 2,444.93 lbs. (1,109 kg) 

COLLISION DAMAGE CLASSIFICATION 12FLEN01 ``` 

12FREN01 

MAXIMUM DEFORMATION Negligible 

1

Values not calculated due to test article weight being less than 220 lbs. (100 kg) 
 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 4 

MASH TEST 3-72 SUMMARY 

Eastern Metal Apex Dual Recoil Max Test Article: Project No. BR0057 

MASH 3-72 Test Program: Test Date: 04/13/2021 

 

PLAN VIEW 

 

SEQUENTIAL PHOTOGRAPHS 

0° Orientation Side View 1 90° Orientation Side View 2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECTION 4... (CONTINUED) 

MASHTEST 3-72 SUMMARY 

Test Article: 

Test Program: 

Eastern Metal Apex Dual Recoil Max 

MASH 3-72 

Project No. 

Test Date: 

BR0057 

4/13/2021 

SUMMARY TABLE 

GENERAL INFORMATION IMPACT CONDITIONS 

TEST AGENCY Calspan Corporation i IMPACT VELOCITY (0°) 63.0 mph (101.4 km/h) 

TEST NUMBER BR0057 IMPACT VELOCITY (90°) 61.8 mph (99.5 km/h) 

TEST DESIGNATION 3-72 KINETIC ENERGY (0°) 876.22 kJ 

TEST DATE 04/13/2021 KINETIC ENERGY (90°) 876.22 kJ 

IMPACT LOCATION (0 DEG) 490 mm from Centerline to Driver 

IMPACT LOCATION (90 DEG) 574 mm from Centerline to 

Passenger 

TEST ARTICLE EXIT CONDITIONS 

NAME / MODEL Apex Dual 

Recoil Max 

EXIT VELOCITY (0°) 63.0 mph (101.4 km/h) 

TYPE Work-Zone Traffic Control Device EXIT VELOCITY (90°) 61.8 mph (99.5 km/h) 

KEY ELEMENTS Sign Stand, Roll up Sign, Metal Base. FINAL RESTING POSITION 186 ft. downstream 

OVERALL HEIGHT 91 in. (2311.4 mm) VEHICLE STABILITY Satisfactory 

OVERALL WIDTH 80 in. (2032 mm) VEHICLE SNAGGING None 

BASE WEIGHT 42 lbs. (19.05 kg) VEHICLE POCKETING None 

SIGN WEIGHT < 5 lbs. (2.27 kg) OCCUPANT RISK VALUES 

ROAD SURFACE Asphalt OCCUPANT IMPACT 

VELOCITY 

Longitudinal N/A 

TEST VEHICLE Lateral N/A 

TYPE / DESIGNATION 2270P RIDEDOWN 

ACCELERATION 

Longitudinal N/A 

YEAR , MAKE AND MODEL 2009 RAM 1500 Lateral N/A 

CURB MASS 5022.4 lbs. (2278 kg) 

TEST ARTICLE POST-IMPACT 

ARTICLE DAMAGE Base Deformation/Upper separation 

TEST INERTIAL MASS 5022.4 lbs. (2278 kg) 

VEHICLE DAMAGE 

VEHICLE DAMAGE SCALE 

FL-1 ; FR-1 

GROSS STATIC MASS 5022.4 lbs. (2278 kg) 

COLLISION DAMAGE CLASSIFICATION 12FLEN01 

12FREN01 

MAXIMU M DEFORMATION Negligible 

1

Values not calculated due to test article weight being less than 220 lbs. (100 kg) 
APPENDIX A TEST ARTICLE DRAWINGS: