We live in scary times. While the world as a whole is looking to be a brighter, more prosperous place for more of the population, some are hell-bent on destruction. Now, that’s not to say that everybody should be running around, looking over their shoulders, but extra vigilance is most certainly called for. Terrorists are constantly finding more devastating ways in which to launch their attacks, and their target range is becoming far broader all of the time. Exactly what type of event, person, building, or business is on or off their radar is anybody’s guess. The last decade or two events have shown us that heavy vehicles become a more common weapon in terror attacks. A truck can weigh many tonnes, and at speed, can cause utter devastation. So, what can you do? How do you know that you are secure? This is where the British Standards Institution Publicly Available Specification 68 legislation (PAS 68) comes into play. PAS 68 is a specification system for the rating of high-security fencing against the threat of hostile vehicles. This means that products bearing a PAS 68 classification code have been impact tested and rated under real terror situations. To put it simply, it’s had some serious vehicles smashed into it, and it has remained intact. The product is then given a PAS 68 classification that will look something like this… V/8000(N2)100/90:0/0 This breaks down as:
- V stands for vehicle
- 8000 in the example is the weight in kilograms of the vehicle.
- (N2) is the class of vehicle. N2 is a truck or similar vehicle weighing between 3.5 and 12 tonnes.
- 100 – the next figure is the speed in kilometres per hour at which the vehicle was travelling.
- 90 – this number refers to the angle of impact. In this case, the vehicle would have hit side-on.
- The final two figures (both zero) show how far the vehicle penetrated the product and how far the debris was scattered, in metres, respectively.
So, that’s pretty impressive stuff. An eight-tonne truck failed to penetrate this product at 100kph. At Zaun, we carry a large range of state-of-the-art equipment tested to the highest PAS 68 standards. Get in touch today, and our highly trained staff will help you find the best option to suit you.
