<P>In Europe, establishing regulations for construction and testing of road restraints has been complex. But the journey has been worthwhile in terms of lives saved, says Thomas Edl,
managing director of Delta Bloc International, based in Vienna.The European Commission looked at this and decided that there should be regulations to make it an even playing field for manufacturers across Europe. Hence, the adoption of CE certification EN1317,
part 5, says Edl.“It was a wake-up call for manufacturers and clients,” says Edl, who joined Delta Bloc in 2005 and has been managing director since 2007. He also holds a PhD in construction engineering material, specifically glass and timber, from Holzforschung Austria – the Austrian Forest Products Research Society. By his own admission, he’s a “technical person who has moved from glass and timber into concrete”.</P>
<P>Manufacturers such as Delta Bloc rose to the challenge created by the adoption of CE certification for in situ concrete barriers (so-called passive safety systems), several years ago. "From our point of view it was a positive move for the market. It forced manufacturers to invest in new technology. If the European Commission had not clarified this,
the technology would have stayed the same for the next decade. Now there is an incentive for manufacturers to improve their product. That means only safe-proven in situ concrete barriers are used on roads. It pushes the industry to develop new systems.”</P>
<P>Delta Bloc is now manufacturing around 200km of CE certified concrete barriers a year and this will increase, he says. “Suddenly manufacturers were coming out with different shapes and heights and the market quickly moved on. For example,
we have slipform in situ concrete barriers where the internal reinforced steel cable is corrosion resistant and the barriers themselves have a 50-year lifespan.”Many European local authorities and highways agencies are now looking at regulations regarding transitional barriers and how they connect to other types of barrier. What is the joint or connect like and is it a safety weak point in today’s continuous safety barrier?</P>
