Selecting the correct guardrail is essential for enhancing safety and ensuring longevity in various settings, from professional building sites to car parks.
You should always start by pinpointing a few factors to consider, before deciding on the one that best suits your needs.
At Armco Direct, we offer Pedestrian guardrails as permanent solutions for on highway and off-highway environments.
Unlike conventional construction rails, these guardrail systems are designed for superior durability and reliability, ideal for protecting both property and personnel.
We’ll show you why Armco Direct’s solutions are the preferred choice for those looking for effective safety barriers.
Guardrail Systems: Assessing Your Needs
When choosing a guardrail, the first step is to assess your specific needs. Consider the location and application of the railing system and the particular challenges it presents.
Consider factors such as the type of vehicles involved whether cars, forklift traffic or lorries, and the proximity to valuable assets. It’s crucial to analyse the potential risks and traffic patterns in your area too.
Each scenario demands a calculated approach to how your guardrail ensures maximum safety and effectiveness. If you’re uncertain about the best guardrail solution for your environment, always seek advice from us before going ahead with a dangerous, less cohesive system.
Types of Guardrails
Let’s break down some of the different railing systems that can provide the right solution for highway and off-highway applications.
PG1 Pedestrian Guardrail
The PG1 Pedestrian Guardrail is specifically engineered to safeguard pedestrians in on and off-highway environments, providing a vital separation between people and vehicle pathways. This robust barrier is ideal for locations like pavements, warehouses, production facilities, service yards, walkways, sports facilities and car parks.
Each PG1 guardrail panel features a durable galvanised finish and can be customised with a polyester powder coating in various colours to enhance visibility, ensuring they meet specific safety requirements. Bolted down to stop the guardrail flying away, these barriers are an essential safety feature for any area looking to improve pedestrian protection.
PG2 Pedestrian Guardrail
The PG2 Pedestrian Guardrail is distinct from the PG1 model, featuring a sight gap at the top of the panel making it ideal for areas with heavier pedestrian traffic or higher safety risks.
This is the only element unique to PG2, enhancing sight lines and awareness for both pedestrians and drivers. While PG1 is suited for general safety demarcation, PG2’s enhanced structure and visibility features provide superior protection in bustling environments like distribution centres, services yards or sports pitches where crowd control and pedestrian safety are paramount.
Compliance and Durability
When selecting guardrails, ensuring compliance with UK safety legislation is crucial, alongside evaluating the durability of the materials used right guardrail throughout. Guardrail systems in the UK must comply with specific standards, namely BS7818 Class 2, which governs the requirements for pedestrian restraint systems.
This standard ensures that guardrails are strong enough to offer effective protection and withstand both environmental and physical stresses over time.
Choose Armco Direct for a More Robust Barrier System
Armco Direct’s products are designed to meet these stringent standards. Our guardrails are galvanised, providing superior corrosion resistance and enhanced longevity. Additionally, the steel used in Armco Direct’s guardrails is fully recyclable, promoting environmental sustainability.
Our products are known for their exceptional strength, resilience against impacts, and ability to withstand severe weather conditions.
With a focus on customer satisfaction and safety standards, Armco Direct’s guardrails are an excellent choice for securing any working or walking surface area requiring enhanced protection.
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FAQs
We’ve done our best to address some questions people ask when choosing a different types of guardrail.
What is the standard for guardrails?
In the UK, the standard for guardrails is defined under various British Standards 7818, which specify the requirements of guardrail, for safety and performance.
- Material Quality: Guardrails must be made from high-quality materials that can withstand environmental conditions such as weather exposure and mechanical impacts.
- Design Specifications: The design of the guardrails must ensure that they are capable of preventing pedestrians, or vehicles from accidentally traversing into hazardous areas. This includes appropriate height, strength, and barrier resilience.
- Load Resistance: Guardrails should be able to resist expected loads, which could include vehicle impacts or crowd pressure in various scenarios.
- Visibility: Guardrails should be designed to be visible under different environmental conditions, incorporating features like reflective surfaces or appropriate powder-coated colouring to enhance safety during low visibility conditions.
- Corrosion Resistance: They must have adequate protection against rust and corrosion, typically through treatments like galvanisation, especially important in harsh weather conditions.
- Installation Standards: The installation process must adhere to specific guidelines to ensure that the guardrails are securely anchored and capable of performing as expected under stress.
- Maintenance and Durability: There should be clear guidelines for maintaining the guardrails to ensure long-term durability and continuous safety performance.
These standards are in place so that guardrails are sufficiently robust, durable, and capable of providing the necessary protection in various environments.
How safe are guardrails?
Guardrails are designed to significantly enhance safety by preventing vehicles and pedestrians from entering hazardous areas. When manufactured and installed according to strict standards and installed to the correct safety parameters, they effectively absorb and redistribute impact energy during collisions, minimising injuries, and damage. Their construction and placement are critical for protecting individuals in on and off-road settings. Regular inspections and maintenance further ensure that guardrails continue to provide reliable safety and perform optimally throughout their service life.
What is the difference between a guardrail and a handrail?
Guardrails and handrails serve different safety functions. A guardrail is designed to prevent pedestrians from veering into hazardous on and off-highway areas such as around machinery in industrial settings, along pavements to prevent stepping into the roadway or near water bodies, offering a barrier against accidental falls. In contrast, a handrail provides support and stability for individuals, particularly on staircases or steep paths, helping to maintain balance. Handrails are usually graspable and installed at a different height compared to guardrails, which are constructed to withstand significant impacts.