Safety Eligibility Letter WZ-305

U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration

1200 New Jersey Ave. S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20590

October 21, 2011

In Reply Refer To:
HSST/WZ-305

Henry A. Ross
Director of Government Relations
Plasticade Products
7700 N. Austin Avenue
Skokie, Illinois 60077

Dear Mr. Ross:

This is in response to your September 1, 2010, letter requesting the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) acceptance of your company's EconocadeTM Type I and Type II Barricades with lightweight warning lights as crashworthy traffic control devices for use in work zones and elsewhere on the National Highway System (NHS). Accompanying your letter was the FHWA Office of Safety Design form indicating successful performance when tested under the AASHTO Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH) Test 3-71 (Modified.)

You requested that we find the Econocade™ Barricades with lightweight warning lights acceptable for use on the NHS under the provisions of the National Cooperative Highway Research Report 350 and MASH based on its equivalence to your previously crash-tested Plasticade™ barricade. The Plasticade was found acceptable in FHWA Acceptance Letter WZ-14 dated May 28, 1999. As no additional crash testing was conducted under MASH criteria, our acceptance will be limited to performance under NCHRP Report 350.

The Econocade™ Barricades described above and detailed in the enclosed drawing is equivalent to the tested barricade as it is now molded as one piece and expected to perform in the same manner as the tested barricade. Therefore, they are acceptable for use on the NHS under the test conditions noted above, when such use is acceptable to a highway agency.

Please note the following standard provisions that apply to FHWA letters of acceptance:

• This acceptance is limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the tested features and does not cover their structural features, such as resistance to wind loads.
• Any design or material changes that may adversely influence the crashworthiness of the barricades will require a new acceptance letter.
• Should the FHWA discover that the qualification testing was flawed, that in-service performance reveals unacceptable safety problems, or that the system being marketed is significantly different from the version that was crash tested, we reserve the right to modify or revoke our acceptance.
• You will be expected to supply potential users with sufficient information on design and installation requirements to ensure proper performance.
• You will be expected to certify to potential users that the hardware furnished has essentially the same chemistry, mechanical properties, and geometry as that submitted for acceptance, modified as noted above, and that it will meet the crashworthiness requirements of the FHWA and the NCHRP Report 350.
• To prevent misunderstanding by others, this letter of acceptance is designated as number WZ-305 and shall not be reproduced except in full. This letter and the test documentation upon which it is based are public information. All such letters and documentation may be reviewed at our office upon request.
• The Plasticade products identified above are patented products and considered proprietary. If proprietary systems are specified by a highway agency for use on Federalaid projects, except exempt, non-NHS projects, (a) they must be supplied through competitive bidding with equally suitable unpatented items; (b) the highway agency must certify that they are essential for synchronization with the existing highway facilities or that no equally suitable alternative exists; or (c) they must be used for research or for a distinctive type of construction on relatively short sections of road for experimental purposes. Our regulations concerning proprietary products are contained in Title 23, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 635.411.
• This acceptance letter shall not be construed as authorization or consent by the FHWA to use, manufacture, or sell any patented system for which the applicant is not the patent holder. The acceptance letter is limited to the crashworthiness characteristics of the candidate system, and the FHWA is neither prepared nor required to become involved in issues concerning patent law. Patent issues, if any, are to be resolved by the applicant.

Enclosures