HITSA-SAFE safeguards urban spaces in the form of bollards, bicycle racks, benches and litter bins that are already a natural part of the urban landscape. In other words, HITSA-SAFE provides anti-terrorist protection with added value.

HITSA-SAFE is a highly useful and practical physical protection system. The design facilitates creation of familiar and welcoming urban spaces. The construction used for the products in the range has been tested and certified as effective in stopping a car. HITSA-SAFE has been certified according to the international PAS 68 and IWA 14 crash-test standards.

All HITSA-SAFE products are removable, allowing for occasional vehicle access. A locking system ensures that HITSA-SAFE products can only be removed by authorised persons. HITSA-SAFE hostile vehicle mitigation products are easy to install, with no cementing in required and a ground depth of just 300 mm.

The background behind HITSA-SAFE is a rising need among private and public players to safeguard physical spaces against vehicle-based threats. There have been instances of terrorist incidents in which lorries have been used as weapons. However, in many cases undesirable and potentially life-threatening vehicle intrusions are unplanned incidents involving cars. Therefore the HITSA-SAFE range is aimed at locations where a risk has been identified relating to cars.

HITSA-SAFE products safeguard open spaces, city centres, streets and squares, where crowds may gather either spontaneously or for planned events. HITSA-SAFE products can also protect buildings, forecourts and entrances to businesses that regard themselves as at risk. This could be hotels, tourist attractions, shopping centres, shops or other businesses that need physical barriers to protect against theft or vandalism.

Hostile vehicle mitigation should always be implemented based on a risk assessment. HITSA works with businesses that carry out risk assessments relating to vehicle-based attacks and incidents, among other factors.

The construction of the HITSA-SAFE range has been developed over a number of years through ongoing testing. The final design has been tested at the accredited crash test facility (CTS) in Münster, Germany. Our products have been approved here and have obtained PAS 68 and IWA 14 certification. Both certification systems are international standards for impact testing of vehicle security barriers. You can find out more about PAS 68 and IWA 14 here.

The PAS 68 and IWA 14 certificates for the HITSA-SAFE range document that the products in the test stopped a car. The vehicles were immobilised after the test. There was no flying debris over 25 kg that could pose an additional danger.

HITSA-SAFE consists of a basic construction that can be concealed in a number of different ways and adapted to customer needs.

The range includes standard products in the form of HITSA-SAFE bollards, HITSA-SAFE bike racks, HITSA-SAFE park benches and HITSA-SAFE litter bins. There may be several models within each category. We can, for example, supply HITSA-SAFE bicycle racks and HITSA-SAFE bollards in several designs, which are also used in our standard product ranges such as NOAH, LENTA, STERKUR or HH20 BIG.

Furthermore, we offer the option of custom-design products incorporating the HITSA-SAFE construction. The basic construction can be concealed within any outer layer. See, for example, the characteristic concrete balls in front of amusement park Tivoli Friheden in Aarhus, Denmark.

All HITSA-SAFE products can be supplied hot-dip galvanised or hot-dip galvanised with a powder coating in any colour. With the flexible options for designing HITSA-SAFE products, the products can be adapted to coordinate with the design concept of a particular urban space or business. With HITSA-SAFE Special it is possible to create brand-new landscape architecture elements.

All HITSA-SAFE products are removable. In streets and squares, access is often required in the event of an emergency, for waste collection purposes or other occasional access. HITSA-SAFE products allow for removal by relevant employees as needed.

This also makes HITSA-SAFE ideal for markets, festivals and other events that only take place occasionally. The base component set into the ground can be concealed by a cover when the HITSA-SAFE product is not in place. A locking system ensures that HITSA-SAFE products can only be removed by authorised persons.

On the whole, HITSA-SAFE products are easy to handle and use. Installation does not involve cementing in and is easy for the customer, who simply needs to prepare a 300 mm deep hole for HITSA’s installers.