Portable barriers from Delta Scientific, the Californian manufacturer of counter-terror vehicle barriers were used at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia. The Games in April on the Gold Coast, in Queensland, saw 4,400 athletes from 70 nations; the largest sporting event in Australia since the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Delta’s MP5000 created vehicle check points that carried crash-certification.
Planning began years before, the US firm reports. Perimeter security was aligned with the recent Australia and New Zealand Counter Terrorism Committee (ANZCTC) strategy for the protection of places of mass gatherings; including hostile vehicle mitigation (HVM) at key locations. As the Australian partner of Delta Scientific, Sydney-based Knight Brothers Pty Ltd secured the contract for the vehicle barrier systems in late 2017.
Matthew Knight, director of Knight Brothers, said: “Barriers protected major event venues including the main games stadium, Gold Coast Convention Centre, the Athletes Village and critical street closures throughout the Gold Coast area. It was important for the Games’ operations that access for emergency and authorized vehicles was maintained through the duration of the event.
“The primary use of the 20-foot (6m) Delta portable barriers was in public areas where ground fixation or in-situ HVM measures were not practical or achievable. Barriers were deployed in a variety of configurations to meet security and access needs. This included direct access points as well as heightened temporary security check points with stringent vehicle inspections undertaken by Australian Defense Force personnel. Secure access points at other locations were operated by contracted security personnel.”
Delta says that its MP5000 portable barricades can be installed in 15 minutes or less at streets, entrances or expanses such as access to pedestrian areas. These deployable barriers carry a recognised K8 rating (M40 ASTM rating). They lower to let vehicles through but, when raised, they will stop a 6800 kg vehicle traveling 64 km/h. At the Games, stand-alone battery operated hydraulic systems with supplementary solar power charging and remote-control operation activated the barriers.
Knight Brothers worked with Delta to adapt elements of the barriers to meet the needs of the Games. This included the ability to externally power the system through Australian compliant methods such as mains power or solar power arrays.
Daniel Knight, director of Knight Brothers, added: “Training of barrier deployment and operation was conducted directly to Commonwealth Games security staff during barrier delivery and commissioning. This ensured seamless integration of the systems across the various deployment locations. We were very proud to be a part of this prestigious sporting event and to provide the first known deployment of portable active vehicle barriers systems on Australian soil.”
