Industrial, mechanised doors and forklifts have one issue in common – the purchasing decision places product price at the top of the determining factors, regardless of the great volume of market intelligence which suggests that this determinant is often seriously wrong. The problem, perhaps, partly stems from buyers trying to get the best deal, pricewise, while being hamstrung by a lack of knowledge of the capabilities and reliability of a bewildering array of features and options on the market from many manufacturers. This leaves buyers wide open to the consequences of poor quality doors and after-sales service, which could even impact safety issues.

chazDoor quality should be taken more seriously in the buying decision because cheap imports, in particular, could need replacing after only six months, found Hart Doors, who do a significant business replacing them. Imported products may also carry the risk of poor parts supply and service back-up, plus inadequate manuals in badly written English or no English at all.

Buyers admittedly face difficult decisions, particularly when dealing with performance products from many suppliers. To combat the many competing claims, buyers should not be overawed by impressive websites and support literature but instead they should investigate the proposals and offers with their potential suppliers’ existing customers. Any potential supplier who is not prepared to offer a list for such site visits or telephone interviews should be shunned. During such investigation it is important to compare their long-term real performance in quality, performance and reliability with long-term cost of ownership. This, of course, adds to the initial cost of buying doors but it would be far cheaper than rectifying problems, of poor quality doors.

If the buying decision  has been a wise one based on the doors’ life cycle costs rather than initial price, then in many cases, particularly with fast-acting roller doors, buyers can look forward to quick payback times. These doors, if of a good quality, can run well after 25 years. One of the main payback issues is the amount of energy they can save, and in this the leading suppliers will often provide free energy audits with likely paybacks. Energy conservation is important both for environmental reasons and conforming with ‘green’ legislation like the Energy Act, 2011, to be applied from 2018. In this respect some door suppliers have made matters easier for businesses by providing fast-acting, insulated, slatted doors, robust enough to double up as an external security door, so that there is no longer any need to invest in two door types.

Door crash-out facilities, offered by most leading suppliers, are also a helpful, cost-cutting feature because crash accidents with forklifts can run to many thousands of pounds a year, far exceeding the initial door cost. Safety can be a big door issue and nowhere, perhaps, is this more obvious than on the loading bay, the scene of the highest number of industrial accidents involving transport. One safety enhancement is the fitment of photo-electric sensors to prevent descending doors hitting pedestrians walking underneath. One serious accident area is premature vehicle drive-offs during loading/unloading work. To combat this, Assa Abloy has added to its Crawford door range Traka’s iFob dock management system. This ensures lorry keys are safety secured at the traffic office before loading bay doors can be opened. The system is suitable for both new and existing doors.

Of the various rapid roll door control methods, the most popular is the inductive loop because it is reliable and not prone to damage or loss. Sensors can also warn if an approaching industrial truck is too big to pass through internal doors.

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