Redrow housing development in Westley Green, Essex, was seeking a solution for their construction worksite of 725 new houses. Redrow needed to create a clear public demarcation between the residential access, on the site and the housing development work area. They also needed to prevent a bottleneck of site traffic entering and exiting the site.
The SOSEC 100 barrier, developed by Solar Gates UK, has a vehicle access barrier and pedestrian gate for access. Two unique and key features that Redrow required. SOSEC barriers are also solar powered, so require no power, they are mobile so can be relocated as the construction site needs and can be deployed in minutes.
One of the main problems that the barrier has solved is the flow of traffic at the site entrance/exit. Before the barrier was in place, deliveries were arriving at site together – one trying to get in and one trying to get out through the narrow entrance. The SOSEC barrier eliminated this problem simply by slowing and controlling the traffic. With the high volume of traffic arriving and leaving the site, flow around the site and safety of the site was much improved. The barrier also removed the need (and cost) of staffing the entrance, meaning a member of staff could be more productively deployed elsewhere on the site. People Vehicle Separation Health and safety requirements were also addressed – the barrier only allows access to those with authority, so no more HSE intervention fines.
Site manager Tom Holmes said: “The barrier improved things instantly and is doing the job we need it to. We’re an incident-free site. With the barrier in place and with it being solar powered, we know that it will always work, whatever the weather and we don’t need to worry about getting power to it as we move the site perimeter. We had it for a month’s trial but realised pretty quickly that we would keep it for the duration of the build because it’s so easy to move around and get working.”