Car Park Barriers

Raise arm barriers, swing barriers and vehicle gates

The range splits into arm barriers, which control vehicles at an entrance that otherwise stays open, and gates, which close the entrance itself.

Manual raise arm barriers

A manual raise arm barrier, also sold as a rise arm or rising arm barrier, is a pivoting arm that an attendant lifts by hand to let each vehicle through and lowers again behind it. The standard manual raise arm barriers suit car park and commercial entrances, and the heavy duty manual arm barrier carries a longer arm for the wider openings of yards, depots and industrial estates.

Automatic raise arm barriers and boom gates

An automatic raise arm barrier is the motorised version, known in the trade as a boom gate or barrier arm, which lifts on a signal so that drivers pass without waiting for an attendant. It is the usual choice for the entry and exit lanes of staff, visitor and permit car parks, and for checkpoints at the entrance to restricted areas.

Swing arm access gates

A swing arm access gate, also called a swing barrier gate, is a single steel arm hung on a post that swings sideways across the road instead of lifting. Because it opens at ground level, it suits covered entrances and multi-storey car parks with little headroom, and entrances that stand open by day and are closed and locked at night.

Rectangular car park barriers

A rectangular car park barrier closes the opening with a steel frame in place of a single arm, which gives drivers a larger and more visible stop. It suits car park entrances and exits that are closed for long spells, such as overnight, at weekends or between events.

Bi-folding speed gates

Bi-folding gates are hinged between their panels, so each leaf folds in on itself as it opens and clears the entrance faster than a conventional swing gate of the same width. The trackless bi-folding speed gates are built for high security entrances with frequent vehicle movements, and the automatic bi-folding gates come in single and double leaf versions to fit openings of different widths.

Automatic 180 degree swing gates

The automatic swing gates open through a full 180 degrees, so the leaf turns back along the boundary and leaves the whole width of the entrance clear for lorries, plant and deliveries.

Mobile vehicle gates for site entrances

The mobile vehicle gate is a 5 metre steel gate on rubber feet and nylon castors, closed with a sliding latch, that keeps both vehicles and pedestrians out of a site. It is the gate for temporary entrances on construction sites and compounds, where a fixed barrier cannot be installed or would have to come out again within months.

Entrance width, swing space and security

Matching arm or gate length to the entrance

Choose a barrier or gate that spans the full clear width between kerbs or fence posts in one piece, since a gap at the end of an arm is wide enough for a car or motorcycle to pass. Manual arm barriers in the range span up to 9 metres and double leaf automatic gates up to 10 metres, so the widest depot and yard entrances suit a heavy duty manual arm or a double leaf gate, and single lane car park entrances suit a standard arm, a swing arm gate or a single leaf gate. Where a wide entrance has a central island, a barrier on each lane is easier to operate than one long arm and lets entry and exit be controlled separately.

Space to open in front of and behind the gate

A swing gate or swing arm gate needs clear, level ground across the whole arc of its leaf on the side it opens to, and a 180 degree gate also needs room for the leaf to lie back along the boundary. Where a kerb, footpath, parking bay, slope or the public road sits close to the gate line, choose a bi-folding gate, because its leaves fold into themselves and sweep a much smaller area in front of and behind the opening. A raise arm barrier lifts vertically and needs no ground space to open at all.

Vehicles only, or pedestrians too

An arm barrier stops vehicles but leaves the entrance open to people on foot, who can step around or under the arm. Where the entrance must be closed outright out of hours, or pedestrians kept off the site, the right product is a gate: the automatic swing and bi-folding gates close the opening at full height, and the mobile vehicle gate keeps both vehicles and pedestrians out of a temporary entrance.

Parking posts, rising bollards and barrier controls

Retractable, removable and Stealth parking posts

Parking posts protect a single bay, a forecourt or a driveway where a full entrance barrier would be more than the job needs. The padlockable retractable parking posts lower into the ground and are secured with the user's own padlock. Retractable parking posts with an integral lock have the lock built into the post, and removable parking posts lift out of their ground socket altogether. Stealth parking posts come identically keyed, so one key opens every bay, or randomly keyed, so each bay has its own key.

Automatic rising bollards

Automatic rising bollards close an entrance to vehicles and sit flush with the surface when lowered, leaving no arm or gate in view and letting pedestrians and cyclists pass.

Control panels, key switches and power supplies

An automatic gate or barrier works as a system: it needs a control panel, a power supply, a local isolator and a means of operation, and the check to make before buying is which of these the entrance already has. The Feig control panel takes signals from fobs and other devices and drives the gate motors. A 24V power supply powers many automatic gates, and a rotary isolator lets the power be switched off at the gate for servicing. A three position key switch limits operation to key holders, and the connection to the mains is work for a registered electrical contractor.