OTW Safety

SUSTAINABILITY

OTW Safety is committed to responsible design, manufacturing, and use of all our products.

OTW Safety employs two different manufacturing styles, each with unique benefits and resin requirements – blow molding, using High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and rotational molding, using Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE).

HDPE is a superior grade of plastic known for its rigid strength and durability. It is the material of choice for our Airport, Roadway, and Crowd Control product lines. HDPE is used with a style of manufacturing called intermittent extrusion blow molding which allows OTW to make large, complex, and uniform parts very quickly. HDPE has high impact strength and a high melt temperature, resulting in barricades that are exceptionally resistant to stress cracks. We recognize the challenging environments barricades operate in and by leveraging the properties of HDPE, our barricades are able to stand up to the harshest conditions. Because our products are usually placed outdoors, a special ultra-violet stabilizer is added to the HDPE to ensure OTW barricades maintain their vibrant color and visual impact year over year.

Linear Low-Density Polyethylene (LLDPE) is the grade of plastic used in our rotationally molded barricades including our Jersey Safety Shapes and security barricade line. LLDPE is also a durable plastic with high tensile strength and good impact resistance but is more flexible than HDPE. Although sacrificing manufacturing speed, rotational molding with LLDPE allows significant design flexibility along with the ability to create barricades with various wall thicknesses and larger outside dimensions than ordinarily allowed with blow molding.

The lifecycle of our products is very important to us. Unlike single-use plastic items, our barricades are consistently recycled into other useful items. HDPE is a very uniform material with a Resin Identification Code (RIC) rating of 2, which makes it an easily recycled plastic. It is often reused to make plastic lumber, tables, roadside curbs, benches, truck cargo liners, trash bins and other durable goods. LLDPE has a RIC rating of 4 and can also be recycled into things like trash can liners, landscaping ties, floor tiles, compost bins, and shipping envelopes. If you need advice on how to recycle a barricade that is no longer needed we are happy to help!

If you want to learn more about plastic applications and the RIC rating system, visit plasticsindustry.org.