A Middle Eastern contract has given rise to a new flat-panel mesh security fence from the UK manufacturer Zaun Limited. The Wolverhampton-based firm has designed a variant of its original HiSec ‘358’ welded mesh configuration with an extra wire every 250mm on the inside to add to security and keep the panel flat without the need for rails or pressed V-beams.
The manufacturer will ship 200-plus 40ft containers of the new HiSec Plus panels over the coming year to secure an unidentified Middle Eastern site of critical national infrastructure.
The first six containers have left the manufacturer’s Wolverhampton factory with a further six set to leave before Easter.
The design department has offset the extra 4mm wires – setting a challenge to the production team – to add to security and make the single panel act almost like a dual skin fence.
Zaun research and development manager Adam Christie says: “It’s brilliant to see this new system coming off the production line as it’s been more than four years in the making. The customer had a very clear specification of what they wanted, but we’ve been able to work with them over time to make enhancements and to reassure them at every step of the way on quality, design, production, sourcing and logistics.”
Those extra horizontal wires of HiSec Plus remove the typical bowing of traditional 358, while the 2.4m-high fence line is further secured with stainless steel razor coil topping and coated barbed wire as line wires. The panels are bolted to 5mm-thick cold-rolled steel posts, which are being welded to steel base plates at Zaun by a new robot welder bought for that task, with each post and base plate some 75kg in dead weight. The rolled steel is folded back on the front attack-prone flange of the post to create an effective 10mm thickness of steel. The post assemblies are then bolted in the field to a continuous concrete beam.
This specification, Zaun says, shows its ability to deliver bespoke high-security fencing. The HiSec 358 is approved by NOMS (National Offender Management Service) for use in HM Prison Service where this mesh type is used due to its tight mesh formation and the fact it can go to 5.2m in height in a single panel. The makers add that it can be integrated with different toppings, as in this case, and with CCTV, PIDs (passive infra-red detectors) and other electronic security. Visit www.zaun.co.uk.
