t 3 

U.S. Depurtrcent 

of Transportatm 

Fedoml HIghway 

Actmlnirtmtion 

w 4, 1935 

4W Seventh St.. S.W. 

Washington, D.C. 20590 

Refer to: HNG-14 

Mr. Jay Mullen 

Component Products, Inc. 

296'Carlton Drive 

Carol Stream, Illinois 60188 

Dear Mr. Mullen:' 

Thank you for your July 26 letter requesting Federal Highway Administration's 

(FHWA) acceptance of a cast aluminum breakaway base CPI-BAS-1 for traffic 

signal supports distributed by your company. Your letter was accompanied by 

affidavits from representatives of Permocast Inc., of Henryetta, Oklahoma,'.the 

,manufacturers of the base. These affidavits attest to the fact that the bases 

;that they manufactured and sold to Pelco Products, Inc., until November 1991, 

and continue to sell to you are the same bases that were crash tested at Texas 

Transportation Institute (TTI). These bases have been approved and used by 

the State of Texas according to the affidavits. The FHUA Office of 

Engineering, however, has not had an opportunity to review the crash tests of 

this base until now. 

Your letter was accompanied by two reports of the TTI crash tests dated March 

1989, on specimens of the cast aluminum base supporting a 114.3~Amy (4+inch) 

outside-diameter (nominal rl-inch) steel support pipe. The base is made from 

ASTM 826 Aluminum 319 alloy, with no tempering following casting and is shown 

in the enclosed drawing titled "SQ ALUM BASE 319 ALLOY - CPI MODEL BAS-'1" 

drawn February 13, 1981. The top and bottom of the base are also machined 

after casting to result in a finished overall height of approximately 385 mm 

(15,1/8 inches.) 

Requirements for breakaway supports are found in the American Associat,ion of 

State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Standard Specifications 

for Structural Supports ,for Highway Signs, Luminaires and Traffic Signals. 

Testing guidelines followed in these tests were those found in the National 

Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 230, "Recommended 

Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway Appurtenances" 

which, for breakaway supports, are an acceptable alternative to the currently 

recognized guidelines in the NCHRP Report 350; "Recommended Procedures for the 

Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway Features." A summary of the test 

data is shown below,and a drawing of the test installation is enclosed. 
2 

Test Number 9429J-1 94295-Z 

Base Designation, WI MS 1 WI 01s 1 

Bolt Circle Diameter, mn (in) ,356 (14.0) 356 (14.0) 

Teet Article *ass, kg cut, Iba) approx. 86 (190) l approx. 86 c1901* 

nwntiml Height, R Cft) 1.52 (5.0) to sign bottm 1.52 (5.0) to si98-v bnttm 

Vehicle "ass, kg Weight, Ibs) 817 Cl.wO) 817 C1800) 

Test Speed, km/h Cnph> 32.9 (20.5 ) 98.7 (61.3) 

occupant mQact sdeed n/s Cfps> 4.3 (13.9) 3.4 (11.2) 

Stub Height, m (in) l . l * 

*The mass of the test articles were not recorded by TTI. This estimate 

'includes the mass of the base, pole, sign panel, and flasher beacon. 

** The highest objects remaining at the foundation were the anchor bolts, 

which were installed to be less than the IOO-mn limit. 

The results of these tests meet the.change in velocity and stub height 

requirements adopted by AASHTO and the FHWA. Therefore, the tested aluminum 

breakaway base described above is acceptable for use on the National Highway 

System (NHS), under conditions comparable to those evaluated, when selected‘by 

a highway agency. The traffic signal supports, including pole, signal 

head(s), pedestrian signal(s), etc., up to a mass of 100 kg (220 pounds) may 

be used with the CPI-BAS-I breakaway base. 

Our acceptance is limited to the breakaway characteristics of the system and 

does not cover its structural features. Presumably, you will supply potential 

users with sufficient information on structural design and installation 

requirements to ensure proper performance. We anticipate that the States will 

require certification from Component Products, Inc., that the hardware 

furnished has essentially the same chemistry, mechanical properties, and 

geometry as those used in the tests, and that they will meet the FHWA change 

in velocity requirements. 

~Sincerely yours, 

2 Enclosures 1 

Geometric and Roadside Design Acceptance Letter Number LS-38 

Division 
-._.- - 

Jclll .__.-_ _L__ 

sclKloL 1 

.----_._A. ___ 

SP I*XD 

LIMII 

. XX’ wt IEIJ 

FLASI lINti 

W-0’ GALVANiZEI) 

4-112’ OUTSIDE 

METAL -POST 

DIAMETER. 

4 - -L 18’ x 314’ nt4cffm BOLTS 

7’ RADIUS 

<- \ -- 4 ‘- NW5 BARS 

._.-- 

I 

- ’ 

t/4’ ti BAR liUUP 19-l/2’ DIA. 

AND 12’ PITCff 

Figure 1. Details .of sigrl iwtalTatiotl for test <)129,J-3. 

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