- Barbed tape
Barbed tape or Razor Wire is a mesh of metal strips with sharp edges whose purpose is to prevent passage by humans. The name "Razor Wire" is a registered
trademark of Allied Tube & Conduit Company, although through long usage the term is generally used to describe the barbed tape products of other manufacturers ("seeGenericized trademark "). While razor wire is much sharper than thebarb s of standardbarbed wire , it is not actuallyrazor sharp. Even so, the multiple bladed edges of a razor wire fence are designed to inflict serious cuts on anyone who attempts to climb through one, and therefore have a strongpsychological deterrent effect. In high security applications, barbed tape supplantedbarbed wire , which could be circumvented relatively quickly by humans without tools. In contrast, getting past razor wire barriers without tools is very slow and difficult, giving security forces more time to respond. There is little difference in the breaching time for a well equipped opponent.Fact|date=June 2008Use
Starting in the late 1960s, barbed tape was typically found in prisons and long-term
mental hospital s, where the increased breaching time for a poorly equipped potential escapee was a definite advantage. Until the development of reinforced barbed tape in the early 1980s, it was rarely used for military purposes or genuine high security facilities because it was actually easier than barbed wire to breach with the correct tools. Since then some military forces have replaced barbed wire with barbed tape for many applications, mainly because it is slightly lighter for the same effective coverage.More recently barbed tape has been used in more commercial and
residential security applications. This is often primarily a visual deterrent since a well preparedburglar can breach barbed wire and barbed tape barriers in similar amounts of time. A simple defeat technique is to cut the wire or throw a piece of oldcarpet over the strands. Residential usage of barbed tape has been criticised by some as the aggressive appearance of the barbs is thought to detract from the appearance of a neighborhood.Due to its dangerous nature, razor wire/barbed tape and similar fencing/barrier materials is prohibited in some locales.
Norway prohibits any barbed wire except in combination with other fencing, in order to protect domesticated animals from exposure. Some local jurisdictions further regulate or prohibit barbed wire altogether. [§ 29 in Lov om dyrevern (Animal welfare law). Accessed August the 4th, 2008, at: http://www.lovdata.no/all/hl-19741220-073.html#29]Construction
Razor-wire has a central strand of high
tensile strength wire, and asteel tape punched into a shape with barbs. The steel tape is then cold-crimped tightly to the wire everywhere except for the barbs. Barbed tape is very similar, but has no central reinforcement wire running down the middle.Types
Like barbed wire, barbed tape is available as either straight wire or
concertina wire . Unlike barbed wire, which usually is available only as plain steel or galvanised, barbed tape is also manufactured instainless steel , to prevent the points from rusting to bluntness. Typically the core wire is galvanised and the tape is stainless, although fully stainless barbed tape is used for expensive permanent installations orunderwater usage.Barbed tape is also characterised by the shape of the barbs. Although there are no formal definitions, typically short barb barbed tape has barbs from 10 mm to 15 mm long, medium barb tape has barbs 20 mm to 25 mm long, and long barb tape has barbs from 60 to 66 mm long. There does not seem to be much available research to indicate whether longer barbs are actually more effective in resisting penetration, but they provide a stronger psychological
deterrent .History
Barbed wire became common in the American West in about the 1870s. It was in the First World War that it was first used widely for fortifications.
Barbed tape was first manufactured by
Germany duringWorld War I , as an expedient measure during a shortage ofwire . Since it was simply punched out of a rolled ribbon of steel tape, it could be manufactured much faster. This early barbed tape had triangular barbs and no reinforcing wire. Consequently it was harder to cut with ordinarywire cutter s, although it was easier to cut withshears , and was generally weaker.Commencing in the early 1970s unreinforced barbed tape was commonly used in perimeter barriers in US
prison s. Severalmanufacturer s of barbed wire and barbed tape began to offer barbed tape with a reinforcing wire in the early 1980s. The first to be manufactured was probably around 1981, although this has been subject to apatent dispute.Fact|date=May 2008 Early brand names of reinforced barbed tape included "Man Barrier" and "Razor Ribbon". The latter probably lent its name to the modern slang term.In Germany, this form of wire is also known as Nato-Draht (
NATO Wire) or S-Draht which is short for Stacheldraht meaning barbed wire.See also
*
Access control
*Environmental design
*Physical security
*Security
*Wire entanglement References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.