We are proud to introduce to the UK market our lightweight, structurally sound composite ballast boards — perfect for protecting railway lines and trackside facilities on embankments from hazards such as rockfall or snowslide.
Traditional concrete ballast boards are heavy and time-consuming to install, particularly over lengthy lines of track, so our glass-fibre reinforced polyester (GRP) model has been designed to be lighter and interlocking — making them quicker and cheaper to fit.
Our composite ballast boards are also more sustainable. Manufactured by pultrusion from carefully selected unsaturated polyester resins and reinforced with resolute glass-fibre reinforcement packs, the sturdy design ensures the boards will not get damaged during transportation, nor crack when installed or while under load.
The GRP pultruded profile is coated with a polyester veil to provide strong anti-corrosive properties and UV protection, giving the product a lifespan of at least 50 years, with no maintenance required.
Composites are inherently impact absorbent, while the tongue-and-groove design of the boards allows interlocking panels to be stacked on top of each another. For instance, our 300mm-deep panels can be stacked up to three high to fashion an extremely strong 900mm-high retaining wall able to withstand a variety of heavy forces.
The lightweight construction of our composite ballast boards allows for easier handling, reducing potential on-site injuries and cutting installation times. To illustrate this point:
- 1 CCS ballast board = 12.5kg vs 1 concrete ballast board = 60kg
Composite boards from CCS are also eco-friendly, as shown in the points below:
- Number of boards supplied in a 18-tonnes delivery:
CCS ballast boards = 1440 vs concrete ballast boards = 300
(almost 5x more fuel used to deliver concrete) - Amount of carbon dioxide emissions released into the atmosphere to produce 1 ballast board:
CCS ballast board = 3.9kg CO2 vs concrete ballast board = 19kg CO2
Further details are available on our dedicated composite ballast boards page.
Designed and developed by Complete Composite Systems Ltd (CCS), these composite ballast boards are available from our exclusive UK stockist Scott Parnell. For installation advice or to receive further information such as testing data, contact our technical experts at CCS.
This article was originally published by Complete Composite Systems.
