For contractors and property owners in Long Beach and across Southern California, the choice of fence post caps may seem minor, but according to Anthony Burr, founder of Safety Pickets, Inc., it can have major financial and safety implications. Burr, who spent years as a concreter working with exposed steel star pickets (known as steel T-posts in the US), invented a reusable steel cap to address the shortcomings of plastic alternatives. His company designs and manufactures a patented, reusable steel safety cap for star pickets and T-posts, currently sold across Australia and expanding into the US market.
Burr argues that the low upfront cost of plastic caps is misleading. Covering 100 posts with Safety Pickets' steel caps costs roughly $250 to $300, and the caps can be reused indefinitely. In contrast, a case in Australia where uncovered posts led to a fall resulted in a $115,000 fine alone, not including site shutdown, medical bills, or legal claims. Even minor injuries, such as a cut requiring stitches, can cost tens of thousands when factoring in medical bills and lost labor. "It can go into the tens of thousands easily," Burr said.
Beyond liability, plastic caps incur ongoing replacement costs because they break, blow away, and become brittle. According to Burr, covering 1,000 posts over five years with reusable steel caps yields a 60 percent saving compared to continually rebuying plastic ones. Steel caps do not rust and likely outlast the posts themselves. Labor is another hidden cost: plastic caps must be put on and taken off each time posts are used, adding about half an hour per operation. "So it adds up quite quickly that the plastic caps aren't actually cheaper," Burr said. The company explains how reusable steel caps cut replacement and waste on its sustainability page.
Liability extends beyond one's own crew. If someone trespasses onto a site and gets hurt on an exposed post, the owner can still face legal action. "They shouldn't have, but they have every right to be able to sue," Burr said. For US contractors and property owners, where legal claims after injuries are common, this exposure is significant. Burr advises contractors to calculate replacement costs, labor hours, and the realistic cost of a single injury, then compare that to the one-time cost of reusable steel caps. "If something can go wrong, then it will," he said. "So just the labor costs, the liability, the headaches, and the stress are all hidden costs. Hidden costs that will add up over time."
For Long Beach businesses, this news underscores the importance of evaluating safety investments beyond the sticker price. With construction and industrial activities prevalent in the area, the potential for injuries and liability is real. As Safety Pickets expands into the US market, local contractors and property owners have an opportunity to adopt a cost-effective, sustainable solution that mitigates risk. More information is available at safetypickets.com.
