Peter Kiewit Sons’, Inc. (PKSI), contractors for the Yoho Bridge Project near Golden, British Columbia, Canada, have recently purchased Carmanah’s R247 solar-powered LED flashers.
The Yoho Bridge Project involved major upgrades to one of the most dangerous sections of Canada’s Transcanada Highway. Approximately one mile of highway was fully upgraded, and a particularly “snaky” section of the road and a two-lane bridge was replaced with a straight four-lane section and a four-lane bridge. The project crew also built a huge retaining wall with a beautiful mountain mural on it. Trucks using this roadway used to have to go through this section at about 20 mph but can now travel at regular speed.
As part of the bridge upgrade, PKSI required reliable 24-hour flashing beacons permanently installed on either end of the Yoho bridge to mark obstructions. The ideal solution would be lighting that did not require hardwiring or continual battery replacement. Carmanah’s R247 units are solar-powered and use LEDs for illumination. They have a three-year warranty and are designed to operate reliably without any scheduled maintenance for five years, so they fit PK&SC’s requirements perfectly. In fact, the R247 units have enough capacity to run for up to 40 days from a full charge without any additional solar charging. This kind of capacity provided the extra level of security PKSI needed to make their purchase decision.
