One of the most common spaces that you will find bollards is around buildings or public spaces with high volumes of people that are situated next to busy roads. When bollards are installed in these locations, their main purpose is to offer a strong barrier of protection for the buildings and people against the impact of a vehicle that has lost control. In this guide, we outline how the different types of bollards according to their mounting respond to vehicle impact and highlight the top 7 spaces that use bollards for property and people protection. If you are looking for strong bollards for protecting your building or a public space, Street Scape tapered bollards are the sturdy and aesthetic choice for protection against vehicle impact.
How Bollards Respond to Vehicle Impact:
Vehicle collisions into buildings can happen easily. There may be a drastic stop in the flow of traffic that causes a driver to swerve to avoid hitting the car in front of them, a person may walk out into the road and cause the driver to lose control of their car, or the driver may be speeding or driving under the influence that can result in a collision. If you have a business, school, or industrial facility next to a busy road, the results of a vehicle that lost control can be devastating due to loss of life, or the damages to the building can be expensive to resolve.
If your property is situated next to a busy road, you should install strong and durable bollards along the street. Bollards provide a barrier of protection for buildings and people against the danger of a vehicle impact. While all bollards offer protection, not all bollards respond to a vehicle impact in the same way. We take a look at how the different types of bollards according to their mounting will respond to vehicle impact.
1) Embedded Bollards:
Embedded bollards are bollards that have a portion of the post submerged into the ground and are permanently fixed in place. Embedded bollards are typically made out of concrete, but you can have steel bollards embedded into the ground. The foundation provides embedded bollards with extra strength and durability.
Embedded bollards provide the highest level of protection against vehicle impact. The embedding of a portion of the bollard allows it to work according to the class one lever theory of effort and movement. As the vehicle collides with the exposed portion of the embedded bollard it pushes the top part bollard in one direction and the portion of the bollard below the ground pushes in the other direction. The resistance of the ground stops the movement of the embedded portion of the bollard, allowing it to prevent the vehicle from moving past the bollard.
The protection offered by embedded bollards is also highly determined by the ground which the bollard is fixed into. If the bollard is embedded into sandy soil, the colliding vehicle will most likely slow down but not come to a complete stop. Embedded bollards should always be positioned in hard, rocky soil or a paved area with added concrete for additional strength to ensure maximum resistance against vehicle impact.
2) Surface-mounted Bollards:
Surface-mounted bollards are attached to the top of the ground using a plate and bolts. Surface-mounted bollards are generally made from steel, but in certain cases, you can have concrete bollards that are surface mounted. Surface-mounted bollards are cheaper to install compared to embedded bollards and can act as a deterrent against intentional vehicle collision, but will not be the strongest barrier against a vehicle that has accidentally lost control.
When a vehicle collides with a surface-mounted bollard, the force of the impact will place strain on the anchoring plate and bolts. Depending on the speed that the vehicle is moving, the surface-mounted bollard may easily give way and result in the vehicle colliding into a nearby building or people. The strength of the surface-mounted bollards is highly dependent on the bolts used to anchor the bollard, with shear bolts being your best option for building and people protection.
3) Removable Bollards:
Removable bollards are similar to surface-mounted bollards but are less permanently fixed. On the ground, a flat plate will be secured using bolts and the removable bollard will be slotted into the sleeve of the flat plate to be held in place. Removable bollards are typically made from steel to allow for easy movement of the bollard.
Removable bollards are useful for controlling traffic and designating parking spaces, but would not be a sufficient protective barrier against a vehicle that has lost control. While steel bollards are strong, the force of the car will easily dislodge the removable bollard out of the flat plate sleeve and continue its flow of direction into the surrounding people or buildings.
When Bollards Are Used to Protect Against Vehicle Impact:
Without even realising it, you have most likely encountered rows of sturdy bollards around many of the buildings or public spaces that you frequent. These bollards have been installed for your safety and to protect the building from potentially hazardous or expensive damages. We have outlined 7 different spaces that most commonly have bollards for building and people protection against the impact of a vehicle that has lost control.
1) Historical Buildings:
Every province in South Africa is bejewelled with the heritage and amazing architecture of historical buildings. As important parts of South African history that have managed to withstand the test of time, it is imperative that these buildings be kept safe from any intentional or unintentional damages. Bollards are often placed around the perimeter of historical buildings to prevent the devastating impacts of a vehicle collision.
2) Schools and Universities:
Schools and universities bustle with South Africa’s youth, making them highly important spaces to be kept protected from any threats. As schools and universities are often located along busy roads, vehicle collisions into the buildings or pedestrians are a major concern. Bollards ensure that the school children or people attending the university are safe from any vehicle accidents.
3) Businesses:
A vehicle collision into a business building would be a massive problem. Not only would the numerous staff and building be placed in jeopardy, but business operations would come to a screeching halt. The expenses of the damages and the lost days of business could be beyond manageable for the business owner, resulting in the closure of the business and many people becoming unemployed. Bollards are necessary outside businesses to keep the people, place, and future of the business protected.
4) Shopping Centres:
A vehicle that has lost control and goes careering into a shopping centre would be catastrophic. Shopping centres are densely populated with people, meaning that there would be numerous casualties if a vehicle collided with a shopping centre. In addition to the possible injuries or deaths, the shop owners would face major losses due to damaged stock or destroyed shops. Shopping centres will have strong and sturdy bollards to prevent the risk of a vehicle impact on the people or shop fronts.
5) Government Buildings:
Like historical buildings, government buildings are also highly important parts of South Africa’s building landscape. Due to their nature and the profile of the people who frequent these buildings, government buildings are always under threat. Government buildings are exposed to a greater chance of an intentional vehicle collision, amongst many other major risks. Bollards ensure that no vehicle will be able to get past the perimeter of the government building.
6) Prisons:
The last thing any area would want is a vehicle collision resulting in the inmates from the local prison obtaining a get-out-of-jail-free card. In addition to the numerous other external safety measures that are installed outside of prisons, bollards are commonly used as a protective barrier against intentional vehicle collisions. Bollards ensure that only authorised personnel enter, and exit, the prison.
7) Industrial Facilities:
Industrial parks often include numerous industrial warehouses that hold a wide variety of items that could lead to potential disaster if a vehicle intentionally or unintentionally hit one of the buildings. Whether it would be a loss of money due to structural or equipment damage or the breaching of hazardous materials, industrial facilities cannot allow for any vehicle collision on their properties. Bollards are the ideal choice for ensuring that industrial facilities are protected from the threat of vehicle impact.
Street Scape Tapered Bollards:
If you have a property that you would like to keep protected from the threat and damages of a vehicle that has lost control, then Street Scape tapered bollards are your perfect choice. Street Scape produces a wide range of bollards, but our tapered bollards offer exceptional protection functionality and style. Street Scape tapered bollards are your strong and affordable bollards ideally suited to property and people protection.
Street Scape tapered bollards are made from strong and durable concrete. We use the highest quality concrete and aggregates in our tapered bollards to provide a long-lasting barrier of protection for your building. The expert manufacturing of our concrete tapered bollards will ensure that they offer your property unmatched protection against vehicle impact.
Our tapered bollards will be embedded in your chosen location. We embed a substantial portion of the tapered bollards to offer even stronger protection against a vehicle that has lost control. We will select only the best foundation for the submerging of our tapered bollards to provide you with substantial resistance against the force of a colliding vehicle.
The additional benefit to selecting Street Scape tapered bollards for your building or public space protection is their aesthetic. The tapered bollards have a stylish design of a wide base that gently tapers into a smooth dome. You can additionally have the tapered bollards finished with either a smooth and painted surface in a colour of your choice or with a textured aggregate finish. Not only will the tapered bollards be functional for protection, but they can also be used to enhance the aesthetic outside your building.
About Street Scape:
Street Scape is a Cape Town-based manufacturer of landscaping elements. Alongside our concrete tapered bollards, we also offer a wide range of concrete and steel bollards in various designs and finishes. We have embedded bollards, surface-mounted bollards, and removable bollards available so that you can find the exact bollard for your functional needs.
In addition to our tapered bollards, concrete bollards, and steel bollards, we also produce high-quality planters, steel and concrete bins aggregate pavers, seating, kerbing, signage, benches, steps, wall coping, and tree elements. We strive to make urban spaces more practical and beautiful with our diverse range of landscaping elements. If you have a landscaping project in mind, we are ready and waiting to be of your assistance.
Keep your property protected with a strong barrier of Street Scape tapered bollards.