How Customer Feedback Led to a Better Bollard Base Design ？

A small change to a traffic bollard base came from a conversation with a customer.

During a visit to our factory in China, we were discussing two of our regular bollard designs, the T-TOP bollard and LOOP bollard.

The customer had used similar bollards before, and he brought up something we hadn't paid enough attention to.

The traditional bollard used a hexagonal base. It worked well when the bollard was standing in place, but moving it was another story.

When the bollard was pulled from the front, the base could roll slightly from one side to another. It was not a major problem, but it made the bollard harder to control, especially when several bollards needed to be moved and positioned in a row.

Then the customer asked a simple question:

“Why not make the base square or rectangular?”

That made sense.

A Simple Change to the Base

We went back and looked at the design from the user's point of view.

With a rectangular base, one of the straight sides can remain firmly on the ground when the bollard is pulled. This reduces the tendency of the base to roll and makes the bollard easier to move in a straight direction.

So instead of changing the whole bollard, we focused on the part causing the problem:

Hexagonal base → Rectangular base

It was a relatively small design change, but it made a noticeable difference in handling.

The updated base gives the bollard better control when it is pulled from the front and makes repositioning easier.

Why We Changed It

There was nothing fundamentally wrong with the original hexagonal base.

It was a design that had been used for a long time and worked for its intended purpose.

The problem was simply that we had been looking at the product mainly from the manufacturing side.

The customer was looking at it from the user's side.

That difference matters.

A factory can check dimensions, materials and production quality. But someone who uses the product every day may notice things that don't show up on a drawing or inspection sheet.

In this case, the customer showed us one of those details.

From One Customer's Suggestion to a Product Improvement

This is also why we don't treat OEM/ODM work as simply putting a customer's logo on an existing product.

Sometimes the request is more practical:

• Make it easier to move.

• Make it more stable.

• Change one part of the structure.

• Adapt the product to the way it is actually used.

The bollard base was a good example.

The customer identified the problem, we reviewed the design with our production team, and the result was a more practical version of the product.

What We Took Away From This Project

Not every useful product improvement starts with an engineering meeting.

Sometimes it starts with a customer saying:

“This is a little difficult to use. Can we change it?”

Those comments are worth listening to.

For traffic safety products, small details can make a difference when workers have to handle, move and reposition equipment repeatedly.

That's why we welcome this kind of feedback from customers.

If you have an existing traffic safety product that works but isn't quite right for the way your customers use it, we can look at the design with you and see what can be improved.