Commercial Electric Doors: All You Need to Know

Choosing doors for a commercial facility is not just a matter of preference. It is a matter of convenience, functionality, security, legal issues, and safety. The needs of a factory loading bay are different than those of a retail store. A warehouse that operates all hour’s shifts needs doors that are more heavy duty than those of an office’s car park entrance.

This is guide is meant to educate the reader on the main type of electric doors available for commercial use, and what one needs to know about fire safety, and access control.

Sectional Doors vs. Industrial Roller Shutters

The most popular types of electric doors that are used in commercial facilities are sectional doors and roller shutters. Each one, however, better suits different circumstances.

Roller shutters are the work horses of the industrial industry. Roller shutters are made of steel or aluminum interlocking slats that coil into a barrel above the shutter opening. The most beneficial trait about roller shutters is that they are very durable and can stand heavy usage. For example, in loading bays where forklifts are constantly used, roller shutters perform very well.

They are also helpful for security purposes. Storing valuable stock or equipment requires commercial roller shutters that are hard to open. For added security, these shutters can be equipped with modified locking systems and reinforced slats.

Insulation is the main downside. Keeping heat in with standard roller shutters is not ideal, which can later lead to higher costs if you need to heat your warehouse for the winter. While there are insulated options available, these do come with a higher price and are more bulky. There is also the noise to consider. Larger roller shutters can be quite loud, and if you have offices or live in a residential area near the door this can be a problem.

They are also very popular for commercial use, especially in places where insulation is required. Sectional doors are designed with horizontal, sturdy, and heavy panels that are connected with hinges. These are then mounted to a track that lifts it vertically and then folds it horizontally along the ceiling. These panels can also be insulated at a high standard which is ideal for cold storage or for food preparation areas, and any other space where the temperature needs to be controlled.

They look more modern and operate silently unlike roller shutters, which matters to customers. This is the reason trade counters, car showrooms and retail units prefer sectional doors.

Cost and maintenance are the downsides. Sectional doors are made up of multiple moving parts, which means one more thing can break. In older industrial units, sectional doors require more headroom. If the user of a forklift catches the door, since the whole sectional door is made up of panels, it tends to be more expensive to repair than roller shutters due to replacing the entire panel.

Fire Safety Compliance and Regulation

Commercial buildings are required to have fire doors that comply with certain regulations – and electric integration makes this more complex. The main fire door regulations to comply with are BS EN 1634, which defines the required fire resistance.

If your electric door is part of a fire compartment boundary – such as between a warehouse and office space – then it must retain its fire rating when automated. This usually means the door should be of a fail-safe design in the event of a fire, which typically means the door will close when the fire alarm is triggered.

Your door motor must be connected to your fire alarm system using a relay system. When an alarm goes off, it disconnects the door control from the power source while simultaneously activating the door’s closing mechanism. This must occur in the event of a power failure, which is why the majority of commercial electric doors come with a battery backup system.

You also need to consider your escape routes. In the event of a fire, electric doors equipped on fire exits must have a manual override feature so that the doors can be opened, even without power, and they should not need a key or special knowledge to operate in an emergency. As a doorknob replacement, some people use the common break glass door activator, which requires a small glass pane to be smashed to be activated.

Regular maintenance is required by law. Fire doors must also be included and checked as part of your fire risk assessment and should have a maintenance schedule that also includes testing the self-closure feature. Most insurance companies require evidence of this and the fire service may issue enforcement notices when doors do not comply.

High-Speed Doors for Warehouses

If you have a busy loading bay or a bay that requires temperature control due to a constant opening and closing of a door, high-speed doors should be considered. High-speed doors open and close much faster than standard roller shutter doors (1 to 2 meters per second).

This speed makes a real difference to workflow, especially if you have a couple of lorries waiting to be loaded/unloaded, or forklifts to are crossing to slow moving temperature zones. If you can reduce door cycle time by 30 seconds or more per operation, this means a great deal for productivity during a shift. And it means less heat loss during winter, as well as protection for refrigerated spaces.

This type of door can use lighter (faster) materials than standard industrial doors. Commonly used are PVC fast doors, or flexible panel doors. Safety is key for the faster operation. Most doors use photoelectric sensors or pressure-sensitive edges that stop the door if someone is in the way and reverse the door. Other curtain doors with foldable middle sections have breakaway features to avoid damage.

The downside is that, for external doors, high-speed doors can lack the robustness of steel roller shutters. This means they are not as secure, but high-speed doors still work very well for internal applications.

Because of the increased cycle frequency, the maintenance requirements exceed the normal upkeep of standard doors. Make sure to budget for more frequent maintenance as parts such as guides and curtain panels may need to be serviced or replaced.

Access Control Integration

Most commercial automatic doors are able to connect to an access control system, albeit with varying levels of complexity. At the most basic level, an access control system consists of a keypad or a card reader that activates the door opening mechanism. More complex systems keep a record of the users that opened the door along with the date and time. This information is helpful for security auditing and time on site recording.

Integrating with vehicle blockades or turnstiles allows for the creation of controlled access zones where movement of people and vehicles is restricted. In larger facilities, automatic vehicles are fitted with number plate recognition systems so that drivers are not required to stop for the gates to open, which speeds up the security process.

If you have an intercom system, you can integrate it with the door control system so that your reception staff can open the door for visitors at their discretion. Access control systems with video verification have become more popular, where a person requesting access is displayed on a screen before the door is opened.

Planning is really important for this level of integration. Every other component such as the access control system, turnstiles, door motors and barriers need to work seamlessly. Most installers are more than happy to provide their services and design a system tailored to your requirements as opposed to trying to integrate three or more existing services.