Crawley Down lifted to new FA standards

18th July 2014

Civic & Public Sector, Schools & Education, Sports & Leisure

The Challenge

New FA regulations and promotion in 2011 meant Crawley Down Gatwick Football Club had to complete various ground improvements by 31 March 2012 or face automatic relegation after the season.

’The Anvils’, whose first team play in the Ryman Isthmian League Division One South, had to comply with regulations over handrails to separate players from spectators, as did all clubs playing at this level of football.

The Solution

League regulations demand the installation of a rigid mesh fence with a spectator handrail around the pitch perimeter to a height of 1.1 metres. Zaun completed the complex supply and installation as changing ground levels required adaptation to ensure maintaining the 1.1m height around the whole pitch.

Zaun contracts manager Steve Hancock visited the Haven Sportsfield Ground to take all of the site details for manufacture and supervised the installation, which was completed a week ahead of schedule.

The FA Compliant Spectator Rails are designed by Zaun to the highest standards, improving safety for both spectators and players. They are made from strong tubular steel with heavy steel welded mesh infill panels. EPDM rubber inserts are used at the fixing points of the panels to the posts to quieten noise from vibration and ball impacts. Advertising boards can also be easily secured.

Gates can also be provided to match in any size for both pedestrian and maintenance equipment access to the pitch.

This system can be used for many other sports facilities where the separation of spectators and participants is important.

About Zaun

Zaun Limited is the sole remaining manufacturer of welded and woven mesh fencing systems that manufactures the entire system in the UK. Zaun makes the mesh, fencing panels, posts, clamp bars and fixings at its state-of-the-art five-acre production facility in Wolverhampton in the West Midlands. Products have been tested and approved by testing organisations including CPNI, LPCB and Secured by Design.

Zaun works very closely with all stakeholders within the business including employees, local, national and international suppliers and a long-established customer base of fencing contractors to design, manufacture and supply high-quality fencing systems, increasingly often providing expertise in integrating PIDs and other systems into holistic security solutions.

Zaun was founded in 1996 and remains a private company solely owned by co-founder Alastair Henman with a regional office in Dubai. They are certified to the ISO 9001 quality standard. It is also a member of the Perimeter Security Suppliers’ Association (PSSA), of which Alastair Henman is a director.

Zaun is a proud British manufacturer and founder member of the Made in Britain campaign, a key player in the UK fencing market and one of the fastest-growing companies in an increasingly competitive industry.