SecureUSA Develops New Safety Module to Prevent Dangerous Vehicle Barrier Malfunction

June 24, 2008 - PRLog -- Atlanta, GA SecureUSA Inc, announced today the release of a revolutionary safety module to prevent hydraulic vehicle barriers from falsely arming and causing catastrophic collisions.

In recent months SecureUSA’s Service and Maintenance Department has seen many serious incidents as entrants have driven over or under crash rated hydraulic barrier equipment that has malfunctioned and armed. SecureUSA has seen a sharp increase in such incidents and in response has been running field and controlled setting tests on at risk barriers, finding that 20% of the identified systems have the ability to malfunction.  Some facilities have become so worried about their barrier systems that they are deactivating them, risking a security threat to their facility in return for patron safety. One major oil company has had barriers shutdown for over a year to avoid the many dangerous malfunctions they have experienced at several sites.

The problem affects several types of hydraulic crash rated barrier equipment including wedge barriers, bollards, swing gates and crash beams.  Entire hydraulic bollard systems have jacked up under vehicles as they have driven over them, as well as wedge barriers. Bollards have even risen with a pedestrian on top and crash beams have lowered on top of cars, narrowly missing vehicle occupants.

SecureUSA actively seeks to assist its customers and provide innovative solutions for perimeter security issues, and has been determined to address this significant safety concern. Through extensive system testing and observation SecureUSA can announce that it has now pinpointed the exact cause of the problem.  It has been found that as some hydraulic barriers age and run through cycles, system wear and tear can cause relays in the barrier’s control system to become sensitive and malfunction, arming the barrier in response to vibration, not system controls or operators. The systems were not designed this way, but unfortunately it is becoming increasing apparent that this problem is real and is a huge safety threat and liability risk for facilities.

SecureUSA’s Gary Souther, Technical Engineer, has designed an effective solution in a “smart” self contained safety unit that can be easily connected to the systems HPU (Hydraulic Power Unit). The Barrier Safety Lockout is quick to install, in less than four hours, and completely eradicates the problem, giving facility owners the peace of mind they need.  

The Barrier Safety Lockout locks out any close function of the vehicle barrier once a person or vehicle drives over the safety loops, making it impossible for the barrier to arm when a vehicle is over or under it. For security, this design does not override the Emergency Fast Operation (EFO) so the barrier can be activated by an operator in the event of a forced entry or threat. The system does not affect the barriers crash rating or level of security, nor operation, but it importantly protects from un-commanded operation. The Barrier Safety Lockout is custom built for each facility, based on their barrier system, and is only required per HPU, not for each barrier.

“The scary thing about these malfunctions is that they can happen at any time. A system could be years old, or just six months old. We have seen both cases. A facility manager has no idea when or if this could happen at their property. The safest and most responsible thing to do is to install this new safety module and eliminate the risk once and for all,” says Janine Hamelly, Manager of SecureUSA’s Service and Maintenance division who has seen and dealt with these situations first hand.

Importantly, the Barrier Safety Lockout also protects against operator error. SecureUSA was called to attend to a recent case in Atlanta when a vehicle barrier armed on an incoming truck as a distracted guard booth attendant activated the barrier without looking.  With this new safety module in place, such an error can no longer occur. At this prestigious Atlanta facility, SecureUSA has now installed the Barrier Safety Lockout, and eradicated the problem. SecureUSA is already experiencing high demand across the market for the Barrier Safety Lockout.

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About SecureUSA Inc
SecureUSA, Inc. is the leading provider of perimeter defense solutions in North America. A majority woman owned business, SecureUSA's capabilities include the manufacture of unique electrically operated “green” vehicle barriers, integration of perimeter defense design build projects, project management, installation and maintenance services. Our commitment is to provide our customers with the look they want and the security they need, protecting facilities against asset loss or damage. www.SecureUSA.net