Swarco - Retroreflective Road Marking Systems

The SWARCO Group is a leading manufacturer and supplier of road safety and traffic guidance products and systems. SWARCO integrates top quality glass beads and pavement marking materials with durable high performance road marking systems with excellent night visibility.

Based on our experience as a road marking contractor in selected countries, we offer consultancy and on-site support in the application process of low-solvent and waterborne paints, coldplastic, thermoplastic, and systems for special purposes.

LOW AND HIGH INDEX BEADS

SWARCOflex, SWARCOlux, and Megalux-Beads® are well-established microsphere brands in the road marking industry. These low index glass beads are available in a multitude of gradations between 1-micron and 1,700-microns. SWARCOlux bead blends and Megalux-Beads are ideal reflectors for more demanding road marking systems, with superior performance under wet / night conditions.

Our recent efforts in research and development have put us among the few companies able to manufacture glass beads with a minimum refractive index of 1.93. The high index beads (plus9beads) are nearly 100% spherical, available in sizes between 40-microns and 800-microns, and are used to reflectorize surfaces such as sign sheetings, textiles, safety garments and high performance road markings.

RAIN SAFETY ROAD MARKINGS

Road markings that give good guidance are all the more important when weather and visibility conditions are bad. SWARCO offers a variety of road marking systems that remain clearly visible in rainy nights. Durable cold - or thermoplastic - materials integrating bigger beads are applied as profiled or structured systems with layer thicknesses of up to 4mm.

So-called agglomerate markings are a very economic solution that provide superior reflectivity with less material to be applied to the road surface. Agglomerate markings not only add to safety on wet roads, but also lend themselves as economic refurbishing and up-grading measures for worn-out paint stripings.

MARKINGS FOR SPECIAL PURPOSES

Beyond conventional marking materials, SWARCO offers special solutions for special purposes. SWARCO's range of products encompass marking materials for motorcycle racetracks, industrial shopfloors and colorful markings to enhance the visibility of zebra-crossings and bikelanes.

Eurotherm preformed thermoplastic markings, which are available in many colours, are ideal for schoolyards, playgrounds or sports facilities, and can even be used to create logos or symbols on road surfaces.

Once incited by a light source, so-called afterglow paint systems deliver luminescence for a certain period of time and thus constitute an interesting solution to identify escape routes e.g. in tunnels or parking garages.

BRIGHTER ROAD MARKINGS AND MORE FLEXIBLE APPLICATIONS

SWARCO have recently developed a new system, plus9spots, that delivers unprecedented night visibility both under dry and wet conditions. plus9spots is a special formulation of high quality glass beads and proprietary reflective compounds.

Damp'n'dry is another of SWARCO's innovative road marking systems. Damp'n'dry's three components make the job of striping companies less dependent on weather conditions. SWARCO and Hamburg-based marking machinery specialists, Hofmann GmbH, are the pillars of this new approach.

Firstly, an epoxy-based, heat-reactive primer is machine-applied to the road surface at a layer thickness of no more than 0.1mm. Immediately after this, a temperature resistant, thermoplastic compound is sprayed to the primed ground, allowing film thicknesses of between 0.4mm and 1.2mm. In order to end up with a highly retroreflective marking, SWARCO No. 1 beads are added.

Extended time-frames for road marking works, environmentally friendly components and immediate release to traffic impact are major advantages of the highly reflective Damp'n'dry system.