When DefendaStrip founders Sally and Richard Sprange set out to evolve their anti-climb security product range, they were looking for more than just a supplier; they needed a partner who could turn a technically challenging concept into a manufacturable reality. That partner was Condale Plastics.
Condale Plastics
The collaboration has resulted in two innovative products: the Rise and the Spin. Both are built on a specially developed extruded base profile produced by Condale Plastics.
A problem worth solving
DefendaStrip began life as a bespoke solution to a very real risk. A tragic case in which a child fell from an unprotected pipeline crossing led to HSE pressure on utility companies to fully investigate the extent of their overcrossings and to provide adequate anti-climb protection. Richard and his business partner, Peter Cornfield, conducted overcrossing surveys and drawings for a major gas company and discovered the need for a cost-effective, easy-to-install anti-climb solution.
From this, the original “Flex” anti-climb strip was born: a spiked, flexible product designed to deter access to vulnerable surfaces. The team quickly realised that by mounting the Flex on a robust, purpose-designed base, they could increase its deterrent factor and expand its applications for a wider range of customers.
The brief: Make it work!
The brief to Condale Plastics was simple: create a base extrusion where the original Flex product could snugly slot. But achieving that proved complex in practice.
“There were raised sections on the Flex that made it difficult, impossible really, to create the right size channel,” explains Sally Sprange. “We were working in millimetres! Eventually, I suggested removing the banding points on the Flex, which allowed it to sit flush within the extrusion.”
Working closely with Daniel Foster, Technical Sales Engineer at Condale Plastics, the DefendaStrip collaboration went through several design iterations and material trials. They needed a base profile that was lightweight, robust and visually striking, with enough height to enhance the product’s presence but engineered to use minimal material.
Richard devised a honeycomb structure that met all those goals. “It gave us the height and rigidity we needed without adding weight,” says Sally.
Dan adds, “We looked at material costs, installation practicality and how this base could work across multiple product formats: flat mount, rotating and more.”
The final extrusion, made from recycled Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), served as the foundation for the two products. The Rise, a static anti-climb barrier designed for fences, walls and other surfaces, and the Spin, a rotating deterrent that uses the same base profile in a back-to-back arrangement. The design also created a first-of-its-kind ‘mix and match’ anti-climb system, where all the DefendaStrip products can comprehensively protect all boundary surfaces, from walls to fences and downpipes to flat roofs.
Future impact
As DefendaStrip scales up production of the Rise and prepares to launch the Spin, both companies are seeing the benefits of a strong supply partnership.
“This project has been a proper labour of love,” says Dan. “We worked through all sorts of technical challenges, but it’s been rewarding. Not just from a manufacturing perspective, but in seeing a small, values-led business bring genuinely impactful products to market.”
Sally agrees: “We couldn’t have done it without Condale Plastics. It’s more than a supplier relationship; it’s a collaboration built on trust and shared problem-solving.”
