Seventy Years of Innovation

We combine our involvement with Roadstuds to detail an historical timeline of development from the initial Cat’s-eye invention through to present times and the effect Roadstuds contribute towards improving night-time driver awareness.

Roadstuds commenced in the UK town of Halifax Yorkshire with Percy Shaw taking a piece of glass and inventing what became famously the Cats-eye roadstud. The year was 1935 and after much deliberation and testing the Government of the day within the department for transport adopting a national policy to use Cat’s-eyes on its then major routes, Further use followed with County Councils also adopting Percy Shaw’s Cats-eye.

Significant sales increased as Cats-eyes were specified for use on the first Motorway opened in late 1958 and all such roads thereafter. Our UK governments at the end of the 1960’s were using Cats-eyes within all of the lane markings and on much of our national trunk road network. Further development occurred in the early 70’s when engineers proposed Roadstuds at the edges of carriageway to give increased nighttime visibility, and looked for a self cleaning reflector and a more cost budgeted product rather than the depressible type cats-eye.

Surface-mounted or “stick-on” Roadstuds were developed in the USA by Sidney A Heenan of the Amerace Corporation who introduced in 1963 a prismatic reflector encapsulated into a plastic body, which applied to the surface of the carriageway. This offered a speedy means of installing throughout much of the recently opened Interstate road network within the USA and in 1967 the Federal Authorities formally adopted raised markers now named Stimsonite from the newly formed Amerace Stimsonite Corporation. Within a short period North America became the largest user of Roadstuds in the world.

Stimsonite therefore provided the answer for the UK to have a cost effective alternative to the traditional roadstud especially as an edge of carriageway marker, and In the early 1970’s Stimsonite were imported into the UK for such use type 88 or 911’s “Stims” as contractors referred together with Catastud a UK developed roadstud fulfilled this need and by the mid 70’s both products successfully were used on most national roads in the UK.

Stimsonite® Corporation further utilised in 1987 from a UK driven innovation launched a new low impact, and smaller more traffic resistant stick-on roadstud. The 948 was recognised as being ideal for UK use, and moreover a real alternative in many situations to the traditional, Cats-eye inset roadstud with its high reflex and low cost combination. Engineers began to specify “948 stick-on” Roadstuds on many of our UK roads.

Though successful throughout the 80’s and 90’s Stick-on Roadstuds were eventually found lacking as traffic density especially heavy goods increased to give premature damage to 948’s and reduced life expectancy. Though tougher variations were launched from which a Stimsonite type 953 did regain some lost ground, eventually ever busy roads began to dictate the importance of life on the road and engineers in 2006 began to favour a reflector within a metal casting which would protect the reflex and body component.

In the early 1980s, Stimsonite Corporation introduced a reflector incorporated and protected into a “H” shape Metal casting for use in the snow plough regions of North America. This highly successful type 101 Snowplough marker, launched into the UK in 1999 by Roadcraft and Fleming as a long life product rather than a Snowplough marker immediately gained some market support but contractors needed specialised installation equipment and this limited sales. Nevertheless the concept encouraged both Companies to continue development towards a more acceptable UK Long Life variation and in 2003 a metal cast base incorporating a previously Stick-on roadstud was tested and introduced into the UK named a 301.

Roadstuds innovated by Percy Shaw in 1935 and used for the very first time on a road just outside Halifax has now grown to a worldwide market of around 110 million. Manufactured in 9 countries with North America having the largest market of approx 46 million “Sun markers or stick-on’s” and 11 million Snowplough types The UK being 2nd in this league table with something like 11-12 million installed.

Countries throughout the ECC are increasingly using Roadstuds particularly the Irish Republic and various new members of the ECC, sales in the Far East Central and South America indicates that Percy Shaw’s original concept of increasing night-time driver guidance and awareness of his environment particularly in wet driving conditions remains true worldwide.

In years leading up to the present Roadstuds has become more technically proficient and now offer an engineer or Contractor a much wider and varied choice of products. Choice of roadstud can be made between a temporary or permanent type. Depressible or non Depressible, inset or Surface applied and between configurations of Reflector type, basic glass, or engineered Micro Prismatic including protective coated or not. Roadstuds are also available as a Passive type which as its name suggest only returns reflex when directed from an external light source or “Retro reflective, and Active being light emitting as well as retro reflecting roadstud”.

Roadstuds in recent years have to be tested for conformity of use in Europe as detailed within a standard EN 1463-1 -2 and in the UK Roadstuds legally to comply to requirements of classification taken from BSEN 1463 and detailed within the Traffic Signs Regulation and General Directions (TSRGD)2002 this being a legal requirement.

Roadstuds have come a long way from Percy Shaw’s original innovation and though a Cat’s-eye is still seen as perhaps a benchmark from which other products have to technically match or exceed.

Engineers and contractors now have real choice, but a difficult one from a variety of different types. Nevertheless a person who spends time to analyse and understand differences between products and the benefits which can be gained, should achieve optimum results and we as a leading supplier will guide you towards that successful purchase.