Solving Problems With High-Performance Doors

© 2006 Door & Access Systems
Publish Date: Winter 2006
Author: Joe Hetzel
Page 62-64


Solving Problems With High-Performance Doors

Joe Hetzel, DASMA Technical Director, along with members of the DASMA High Performance Door Division

Your market area likely contains potential customers who need high-performance doors. This article will define a “high-performance” door, outline the door’s history, and give a brief look at the door’s varied uses and benefits.

What Are They?

DASMA’s High Performance Door Division’s new definition of a high-performance door has helped to put a face on the industry.

DASMA defines high-performance doors as non-residential, powered doors, characterized by rolling, folding, sliding, or swinging action, that are:
· either high-cycle (minimum 100 cycles/day) or high-speed (minimum 20 inches/second) and
· two out of three of the following:
· Made-to-order for exact size and custom features
· Designed to be able to withstand equipment impact (break-away during hits)
· Designed to sustain heavy usage with minimal maintenance

A Short History

The first high-performance door was introduced in Sweden in the early 1970s. In the early 1980s, high-performance door technology made its way to North America.

Over the years, changing global needs have greatly influenced the industry. This explains the emergence of more than a dozen manufacturers that today collectively produce a wide spectrum of doors that meet the DASMA definition.

Meeting Needs

Today’s high-performance door manufacturers specialize in different door types, performances, and characteristics. These doors are typically designed with various safety features that reduce hazards to individuals passing through door openings.

In addition, depending on door design, high-performance doors can also result in one or more of the following benefits.

· Controlling Temperatures. Cold-storage, food-processing, and beverage applications use high-performance doors to better maintain constant temperatures in freezer and cooler environments. Industrial and commercial applications use the doors in high-traffic exterior openings to better control heated, air-conditioned, or refrigerated environments. In both cases, better control of the environment reduces energy costs, which has become increasingly important.

· Separating Environments. Pharmaceutical and food-processing facilities use high-performance doors to separate areas with differing noise levels, to maintain certain atmospheric conditions in a room, or to help control air-pressure differentials.

· Improving Productivity. Manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution facilities use high-performance doors to improve traffic flow through high-use openings. For this application, doors that are both high-cycle and high-speed can minimize the time spent waiting for doors to open.

· Lowering Maintenance Costs. High-cycle high-performance doors are designed to operate with little maintenance. This reduces maintenance costs and minimizes downtime, which is especially valuable in 24/7 facilities.

· Improving Traffic Security. Government and commercial parking facilities can use high-speed high-performance doors to reduce the time the door is open. This minimizes or prevents unauthorized entry of tailgating vehicles.

· Improving Building Security. Some manufacturers offer doors with rigid panels, which provide extra protection against facility break-ins.

· Increased Resistance to High Winds. High-performance doors are often installed in large exterior openings. Some manufacturers offer large doors that are engineered to resist high winds and meet local codes.

The Problem Solvers

For more information, contact any of the following members of the DASMA High Performance Door Division.

Albany Door Systems (www.albint.com)
ASI Technologies (www.asidoors.com)
Dynaco USA (www.dynacodoor.us)
Flexon (www.flexoninc.com)
Megadoor (www.megadoor.com)
Overhead Door (www.overheaddoor.com)
Rite-Hite Doors (www.ritehitedoors.com)
Rytec (www.rytecdoors.com)