The Metalith is a prefabricated steel barrier and the name of the product division of Infrastructure Defense Technologies of
Belvidere, Illinois
Belvidere is a city in and the county seat of Boone County, Illinois, United States. It is settled on the Kishwaukee River in far northern Illinois. Known as the 'City of Murals', Belvidere is home to several public art installations througho ...
, which manufactures the barrier. It is used in
perimeter defense against
explosive penetration and
ramming
In warfare, ramming is a technique used in air, sea, and land combat. The term originated from battering ram, a siege engine used to bring down fortifications by hitting it with the force of the ram's momentum, and ultimately from male sheep. Thus ...
. It has been deployed by the
US Armed Forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. U.S. federal law names six armed forces: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and the Coast Guard. Since 1949, all of the armed forces, except ...
in their 21st century wars in
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
and
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
.
A related product from IDT is the Metalith flood control barrier, a system of prefabricated, interlocking aluminum barriers for flood defense, designed to hold ballast such as sand.
Army Corps of Engineers tests have shown they can be assembled 20 times faster than sandbags and faster than any other tested flood control system, with relatively low seepage rates.
References
External links
The Metalith websiteexplosive test conducted on Metalith barrier, at Youtube
Engineering companies of the United States
Defense companies of the United States
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