Guard rail
**1. Guardrail Applications and Types:**
– Guard rails are installed in public spaces and buildings to prevent accidental falls.
– Different materials like stainless steel cables and glass panels are used for guard rails.
– Safety guardrails in industrial workplaces are primarily made of fabricated steel.
– Various types of steel, such as box beam steel and I-beam steel, are used for safety guardrails.
– Guard rails are also used in architectural designs to prevent accidents and suicides.
– Guard rails are placed along hiking trails, scenic overlooks, observation towers, and bridges for safety.
– Guard rails find applications in technology contexts for security measures.
– Steel guardrails come in different grades suited for various applications based on factors like vehicle size, traffic volume, and area risk.
– Polymer guardrails offer enhanced visibility and impact dispersal for safety.
**2. Guardrail Design and Standards:**
– Building codes mandate specific requirements for guard rail openings.
– Workplace safety regulations mandate guardrails for elevated work areas.
– Guardrail systems in industrial facilities control vehicular traffic and protect against property damage and harm to personnel.
– Guardrail height and design considerations are essential for controlling vehicle traffic and preventing trip hazards.
– Guard rails on observation towers and bridges are mandated by building codes.
– Guard rails are implemented in various technological settings to enhance safety and security measures.
– BSI published PAS 13:2017 for safety barrier impact resilience testing guidelines.
– Manufacturers of guardrails test products at varying impact levels for safety compliance.
– ProGMA is working with ANSI to develop an industry testing standard for both steel and polymer guardrails.
**3. Automotive and Traffic Safety:**
– Highway guardrails prevent vehicles from hitting roadside obstacles or veering into oncoming traffic.
– Different types of guardrails like Blocked-Out W-beam and Midwest Guardrail System are used on highways.
– Guardrails function as a system with posts, rail connection, and end anchors playing crucial roles in impact resistance.
– Pedestrian railings in cities and close safety barriers can increase chances of injury.
– Removal of pedestrian railings in some UK councils is part of the shared space paradigm in urban design.
**4. Maintenance and Repair of Guardrails:**
– Steel guardrails may permanently deform upon impact, requiring repair or replacement.
– Polymer guardrails offer flexibility to bend on impact without damage.
– Guardrails need regular inspection for damage and wear to ensure continued safety.
– Proper maintenance extends the lifespan of safety guardrails.
**5. Regulations and Standards for Guardrails:**
– BSI’s PAS 13:2017 provides guidelines for safety barrier testing in workplace environments.
– ProGMA is collaborating with ANSI to establish industry-endorsed testing standards.
– Guardrail systems must meet specific impact resilience criteria for compliance.
– Regular updates and revisions to safety standards help improve guardrail quality and performance.
Guard rails, guardrails, railings or protective guarding, in general, are a boundary feature and may be a means to prevent or deter access to dangerous or off-limits areas while allowing light and visibility in a greater way than a fence. Common shapes are flat, rounded edge, and tubular in horizontal railings, whereas tetraform spear-headed or ball-finialled are most common in vertical railings around homes. Park and garden railings commonly in metalworking feature swirls, leaves, plate metal areas and/or motifs particularly on and beside gates.
High security railings (particularly if in flat metal then a type of palisade) may instead feature jagged points and most metals are well-suited to anti-climb paint.
A handrail is less restrictive on its own than a guard rail and provides support.
Guardrails also apply in a technology context.