Choosing the right Industrial Door

Today, selecting the right industrial door for your facility can be more complicated than ever. There are a variety of doors on the market today, so it's easy to understand why choosing the best industrial door is a difficult decision.

In addition, not all doors are the same. A misapplied door can cause serious problems with environmental control, efficiency, durability and safety, while a properly applied door can: improve safety, increase productivity, save energy, minimize maintenance and repair costs, enhance plant productivity, and provide the best overall return on investment.

There are six factors to consider, which will help you determine the best total door solution for your facility.

1. Environmental Control

2. Efficiency

3. Durability

4. Safety

5. Activation

6. Selection

Determine Importance of Environmental Control.

The most common reason for purchasing a door is to separate different environments. There are several factors which can affect environmental control. These include: environmental separation, sealing, speed of operation, security and quality control. By examining these factors and their importance to you, you will be one step closer to choosing the door that will provide the best environmental control for your application.

Examine how Efficiency can be Improved.

Proper door selection can improve the efficiency of a facility. For example, a fast passage time allows equipment to move quickly through the opening, increasing productivity. Also, optimizing the traffic flow through a facility will improve efficiency, and will increase the productivity of your employees. A closer look at the issues affecting efficiency will help you make the right door decision.

Choose a Door Designed for Durability.

The durability of a door can be determined by the following criteria: performance, impactability, maintenance needs and service support. Choose a door which was designed to meet your durability requirements.

Make the Safest Choice Possible.

Because safety is important at every facility, factors must be considered which can affect safety. For example, the type and flow of traffic at the opening can contribute to safety concerns. Also consider visibility needs at the opening. A high traffic opening will require more visibility than an opening with minimal traffic. Finally, look for the potential for accidents and choose a door which will help prevent those accidents.

Activation of Power Doors is as Important as the Door Itself.

Activation is often taken for granted in door selection, however properly activated doors can provide many benefits. Use activation to your advantage to improve safety, increase environmental separation, customize door operation, improve productivity, eliminate false cycles, minimize door impacts, and lower maintenance and downtime. To determine the best activation for your application, look at the traffic, equipment going through and around the opening, the physical characteristics of the opening, and the types of activation offered.

Final Selection is a Total Door Solution.

The door manufacturer you choose should provide a total solution, not just hardware. You should expect innovative products with state-of-the-art features. But, you're not only choosing an industrial door, you're also choosing a company. Make sure you select a manufacturer and local dealer who stand behind the equipment and provide complete service and support. Ask about a company's track record with existing customers. Ask for a product demonstration, and visit a field site where the equipment has been installed for some time. Check out the availability of service specialists. Ask about guaranteed life expectancy of the door and make sure you get written warranties.