Office of the Administrator 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE

 Washington, D.C. 20590

November 18, 2010

In Reply Refer To:

 HSSI/B-203

Mr. John Williams

President

GSI High Tension Cable LP

720 W. Wintergreen

Hutchins, Texas 75141

Dear Mr. Williams:

This letter is in response to your request for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 

acceptance of a roadside safety system for use on the National Highway System (NHS).

Name of system: Four Cable Transition to W-Beam Guardrail

Type of system: High Tension Flexible to Semi Rigid Barrier Transition

Test Level: NCHRP Report 350 TL-3

Testing conducted by: N/A

Task Force 13 Designator: STC02

Date of request: October 6, 2009

You requested that we find this system acceptable for use on the NHS under the provisions of the 

National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350 “Recommended 

Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway Features.” 

Decision:

The following device was found acceptable, with details provided below:

• GSI Four Cable Transition to W-Beam Guardrail

Requirements

Roadside safety devices should meet the guidelines contained in the NCHRP Report 350 or the 

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Manual for Assessing 

Safety Hardware (MASH). The FHWA Memorandum “Identifying Acceptable Highway Safety 

Features” of July 25, 1997, provides further guidance on crash testing requirements of 

longitudinal barriers. 
2

Description

On October 19, 2005, we accepted a transition design for a high-tension 3-cable barrier to 

strong-post w-beam barriers. This letter (copy enclosed for reference), was addressed to

Mr. Rick Mauer of Nucor Steel Marion, was for a system where all three cables were attached to 

the same panel of the w-beam barrier. Our acceptance was based on full-scale crash testing of a 

low-tension cable barrier transition, and the knowledge that a high-tension cable barrier would 

deflect less under impact and likely provide smoother redirection than the tested system.

Your present request is to modify the three-cable transition to accommodate four cables. As seen 

in the drawing enclosed for reference, the cables attach to the w-beam rail at two separate 

locations. The two bottom cables attach to one panel, and the two top cables attach 6 feet, 

3 inches downstream from that point. The attachments use the same mitered 1 1/4-inch standard 

pipes to bolt the end of the swaged cable end assemblies.

Findings

We concur that the system described above and detailed in the enclosed drawings is acceptable 

for use on the NHS under the range of conditions that the low-tension cable transition was tested, 

when such use is acceptable to a highway agency.

Please note the following standard provisions that apply to the FHWA letters of acceptance:

• This acceptance is limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the systems 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 system 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 system being marketed is 

significantly different from the version that was crash tested, we reserve the right to 

modify or revoke our 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 it will meet the crashworthiness requirements of the FHWA and the 

NCHRP Report 350. 

• To prevent misunderstanding by others, this letter of acceptance is designated as number 

B-203 and shall not be reproduced except in full. This letter and the test documentation 

upon which it is based are public information. All such letters and documentation may be 

reviewed at our office upon request. 

• The GSI Cable to W-Beam Transitions are patented products and considered proprietary. 

If proprietary systems are specified by a highway agency for use on Federal-aid projects, 

except exempt, non-NHS projects, (a) they must be supplied through competitive bidding 

with equally suitable unpatented items; (b) the highway agency must certify that they are 

essential for synchronization with the existing highway facilities or that no equally 
3

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.

• This acceptance letter shall not be construed as authorization or consent by the FHWA to 

use, manufacture, or sell any patented system for which the applicant is not the patent 

holder. The acceptance letter is limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the 

candidate system, and the FHWA is neither prepared nor required to become involved in 

issues concerning patent law. Patent issues, if any, are to be resolved by the applicant

Sincerely yours,

 Michael S. Griffith

 Director, Office of Safety Technologies

Office of Safety

FHWA:HSSI:NArtimovich:ms:x61331:11/17/10

File: s://directory folder/nartimovich/B203_GSI_Cable_Transition.doc

cc: HSSI (Reader, HSA; Chron File, HSSI; NArtimovich, HSSI; JDewar, HSSI) 
 Office of the Administrator 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE

 Washington, D.C. 20590

November 18, 2010

In Reply Refer To:

 HSSI/B-203

Mr. John Williams

President

GSI High Tension Cable LP

720 W. Wintergreen

Hutchins, Texas 75141

Dear Mr. Williams:

This letter is in response to your request for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 

acceptance of a roadside safety system for use on the National Highway System (NHS).

Name of system: Four Cable Transition to W-Beam Guardrail

Type of system: High Tension Flexible to Semi Rigid Barrier Transition

Test Level: NCHRP Report 350 TL-3

Testing conducted by: N/A

Task Force 13 Designator: STC02

Date of request: October 6, 2009

You requested that we find this system acceptable for use on the NHS under the provisions of the 

National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350 “Recommended 

Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway Features.” 

Decision:

The following device was found acceptable, with details provided below:

• GSI Four Cable Transition to W-Beam Guardrail

Requirements

Roadside safety devices should meet the guidelines contained in the NCHRP Report 350 or the 

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Manual for Assessing 

Safety Hardware (MASH). The FHWA Memorandum “Identifying Acceptable Highway Safety 

Features” of July 25, 1997, provides further guidance on crash testing requirements of 

longitudinal barriers. 
2

Description

On October 19, 2005, we accepted a transition design for a high-tension 3-cable barrier to 

strong-post w-beam barriers. This letter (copy enclosed for reference), was addressed to

Mr. Rick Mauer of Nucor Steel Marion, was for a system where all three cables were attached to 

the same panel of the w-beam barrier. Our acceptance was based on full-scale crash testing of a 

low-tension cable barrier transition, and the knowledge that a high-tension cable barrier would 

deflect less under impact and likely provide smoother redirection than the tested system.

Your present request is to modify the three-cable transition to accommodate four cables. As seen 

in the drawing enclosed for reference, the cables attach to the w-beam rail at two separate 

locations. The two bottom cables attach to one panel, and the two top cables attach 6 feet, 

3 inches downstream from that point. The attachments use the same mitered 1 1/4-inch standard 

pipes to bolt the end of the swaged cable end assemblies.

Findings

We concur that the system described above and detailed in the enclosed drawings is acceptable 

for use on the NHS under the range of conditions that the low-tension cable transition was tested, 

when such use is acceptable to a highway agency.

Please note the following standard provisions that apply to the FHWA letters of acceptance:

• This acceptance is limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the systems 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 system 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 system being marketed is 

significantly different from the version that was crash tested, we reserve the right to 

modify or revoke our 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 it will meet the crashworthiness requirements of the FHWA and the 

NCHRP Report 350. 

• To prevent misunderstanding by others, this letter of acceptance is designated as number 

B-203 and shall not be reproduced except in full. This letter and the test documentation 

upon which it is based are public information. All such letters and documentation may be 

reviewed at our office upon request. 

• The GSI Cable to W-Beam Transitions are patented products and considered proprietary. 

If proprietary systems are specified by a highway agency for use on Federal-aid projects, 

except exempt, non-NHS projects, (a) they must be supplied through competitive bidding 

with equally suitable unpatented items; (b) the highway agency must certify that they are 

essential for synchronization with the existing highway facilities or that no equally 
3

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.

• This acceptance letter shall not be construed as authorization or consent by the FHWA to 

use, manufacture, or sell any patented system for which the applicant is not the patent 

holder. The acceptance letter is limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the 

candidate system, and the FHWA is neither prepared nor required to become involved in 

issues concerning patent law. Patent issues, if any, are to be resolved by the applicant

Sincerely yours,

 Michael S. Griffith

 Director, Office of Safety Technologies

 Office of Safety