Europe’s most robust transition solution

The road safety professionals at voestalpine Krems Finaltechnik GmbH have launched the first H4b-tested transition onto the European market, a robust restraint solution which will save (even more) lives in future.

There are many types of vehicle restraint system. The transitions from one system to another are particularly problematic, because occasionally they need to connect two completely different materials, such as flexible steel and rigid concrete. “These are potentially the most dangerous stretches of road, and accidents occurring at transitions are often fatal,” knows Roland Stichauner, Head of Sales for the Road Safety business segment.

A European premiere

The road safety professionals at voestalpine Krems Finaltechnik GmbH have now launched an exceptionally robust transition solution in steel and concrete, specifically to solve the problematic issue of transitioning between steel restraints and concrete barriers. “This the first transition in Europe to be H4b tested,” says a delighted Roland Stichauner, Head of Sales for the Road Safety business segment. H4b means that the transition solution meets the highest restraint level—the ultimate in industry testing.

The first H4b transition was installed in Lower Austria, close to Vienna Airport. This spring, further transitions produced in Krems will be added in order to mitigate potential danger zones in Austria’s major road network, and consequently elsewhere.

In-house capacity to innovate

Competitors have also tried to perform in this “Champions League” of transitions, but to date without success. Our in-house development team spent around a year working on the new transition solution. The secret behind the small yet powerful team’s “transition success”: “At voestalpine Krems Finaltechnik we do everything in-house—the development, production, project execution, assembly, and of course we have decades of experience in vehicle restraint systems. Not only that, but we also cooperated with an experienced concrete producer for this special solution,” Roland Stichauner knows.

Optimized construction

The novel aspect of the new transition is its technically optimal construction. In other words, the technicians in Krems continued to make adjustments and ensured all the components fitted together perfectly until the 25 meter-long concrete and steel system was extremely stable, and able to balance out the marked differences between the two materials as far as feasibly possible. An external testing institute joined the Graz University of Technology to put the solution from Krems through its paces, testing it according to EN 1317 and H4b.

Certified complete solution

Not only that, but in order to err on the side of caution, the German Federal Highway Research Institute (BASt) determined the most unfavorable point of impact for the comprehensive field tests—and with success. “Our new transition can even withstand a 38.5 ton truck,” says a delighted Roland Stichauner. There is significant market interest because the new transition solution can be almost “seamlessly” integrated into most standard restraint systems. So here’s to another road safety enhancement!