Star Picket Cap Project: Reducing Plastic Waste & Preventing Injury With Caps That Fit

Every year, millions of star pickets are used in Australian construction, mining, or roadside projects. Unfortunately, they have been linked to fatalities and severe injuries. Legally, these pickets should have safety caps covering their sharp ends, yet accidents are still occurring. Existing caps are prone to breaking or coming off, posing risks. Additionally, as picket ends are damaged during installation, the existing caps cannot fit. Loose caps not only pose large risks to safety and legal penalties but also add to devastating plastic pollution. Approximately 50 million caps annually go to landfills or are washed into rivers and oceans.

To combat these challenges, the Barefoot Collective developed a new star picket safety cap solution. Their caps are designed to fit new, old, misshapen, or damaged pickets securely. Simple to deploy, once installed, they remain in position, offering both visibility and safeguarding against the sharp ends of star pickets. They use recycled ocean plastics to promote sustainability and support marginalised coastal communities.

Deaths and serious injuries from unsecured star pickets occur every year. This solution helps to prevent at least some of these accidents while contributing to sustainability. This recycled product helps combat ocean pollution and eliminate some of the plastic pollution caused by the current solution which is made from virgin plastic. Adhering to strict standards, this design emphasizes sustainability, renewability, ecological protection, and positive social impact. It marks only the initial step in Barefoot Collective’s mission to enhance safety and reduce plastic pollution in the Construction and Main Roads industry through improved design and practices.