7 Must-Have Features For Automatic Doors

There is no doubt that automatic doors have grown in popularity in modern buildings and commercial spaces. These doors offer convenience, functioning optimally to provide instant access to the interior of a commercial building. It is their features that can contribute to their ability to operate seamlessly.

Selecting the right features is crucial, for this reason – their seamless function, but it’s also the key to ensuring the doors operate safely. Lock-Up Services, a leading commercial locksmith in Toronto, fully understands which features need to be included with your automatic doors. Our article today will explore the seven must-have features you should not overlook when choosing an automatic sliding door for a commercial space.

Accessibility

Accessibility is an essential feature for automatic doors – and it is essential for a reason. It can ensure that people who experience challenges with mobility or who have disabilities can enter a commercial space easily – it means they do not need to push the door to enter. And these doors comply with the Accessible Canada Act which states that there needs to be a removal of barriers in the built environment for all persons, especially persons with disabilities.

Now, these doors offer easy accessibility through several features. For instance, wide openings and low activation forces are essential.

• Wide openings: Wide openings are fundamental in providing easier access to commercial spaces and modern buildings for those with disabilities. For example, a person who uses a wheelchair or an assistive device will be able to access the building and exit without any barriers blocking them from either side, and this aligns with the aforementioned Accessible Canada Act.
• Low activation force: Low activation force refers to a feature that means minimal or almost no activation force is needed to trigger the opening of the automatic door. This benefit works with specific features. For instance, the automatic mechanism can be activated without physical force, which is suited to those with low mobility.

Safety Sensors

With the inclusion and incorporation of safety sensors as an automatic door operator feature, there are a couple of advantages. For example, they can ensure accidents and injuries do not happen, and they do this by detecting obstructions that block the path of the door, thereby ensuring that the automatic doors do not close when someone is leaving the commercial space or modern building.

A couple of safety sensors are available for this type of door, and these include the following examples:

• Motion detection sensors: It’s with a motion detection sensor that automatic doors detect an individual’s movement close to the door, ensuring the optimal, safe functioning of the mechanism – and preventing people from getting trapped between the closing doors.
• Infrared sensors: Using an infrared sensor, automatic doors send out a beam of light, which when blocked by an individual, stops the doors from closing. They detect any obstacles using this mechanism, maintaining the safe operation of the doors.
• Pressure sensors: With pressure sensors, such as safety mats, automatic doors will remain open when an individual has placed a foot or assistive mobility device on the mat’s surface. Their pressure-sensitive functioning means the doors open safely for those needing to enter the commercial space or modern building.

Speed Control

Beyond these functions, speed control calibration for automatic doors can make a real difference in terms of safety, and this is particularly important in specific circumstances. For example, if there is high traffic and a greater flow of individuals passing through the automatic door, the installed automatic door needs to operate with the right speed to facilitate exit and entry, and keep individuals safe.

In terms of calibration, there are adjustable speed settings that serve this safety purpose. For instance, potentiometers can be turned clockwise to make the doors close faster and counterclockwise to make the doors close more slowly. So, to adjust the speed, locate the control box of the door and adjust this feature, then test the speed of the door to confirm the adjustment is successful.

In other cases, you may require a handheld programming unit to access the control panel, after which you can make the adjustments by following the manufacturer’s guidance or the panel’s setting instructions.

Remote Control and Automation

Then, there are remote control and automation features that offer a full range of benefits for automatic doors. A remote control feature allows the easy operation of automatic doors from a distance, while automation features allow the door to function according to the settings you select. Now, their benefits range from enhanced security to greater convenience:

• Enhanced security: Remote controls greatly limit unauthorized access to commercial spaces or modern buildings, doing this with their specific features. For instance, they can allow the owner of the commercial space to control the access through the doors and even monitor them from remote locations – keeping the space and those within the building safe.
• Greater convenience: A remote control for automatic doors is ideal for improved accessibility and greater convenience. For instance, just like the speed control calibration, they are able to help you regulate the traffic during high-traffic moments – and this is all possible from one central location, at a distance.

Energy Efficiency

A feature that the best automatic doors will offer is energy efficiency. It’s a crucial feature, allowing for greater savings and being suitable for the environment. For example, as the door is not activated excessively, this helps to maintain the optimum temperature indoors and savings can be made in terms of energy consumption as a result. A couple of features make energy efficiency possible:

• Motion sensors: With motion sensors, the automatic door will only open when triggered – and this means it will not open when it is not required. This can, in turn, save energy and electricity, which translates to savings for your business.
• Low-power standby modes: With the option to activate a low-power or standby mode on your automatic door, you can ensure the doors use less energy, and you can use this feature during specific hours. For instance, you may consider activating the standby mode in off-peak hours, to decrease energy usage when it is not required.

Durability and Weather Resistance

High-grade outdoor automatic doors will need to be durable and weather resistant – features that have a few benefits. For instance, it ensures they operate smoothly despite extreme weather. Yet, they can have additional energy efficiency benefits, sealing out the extreme weather and mitigating the passage of air and drafts into the commercial space or modern building.

A few specific construction materials aid in the durability and weather-resistant features that these doors provide:

• Tempered glass: The tempered glass used in automatic doors is one of the highest-grade glass types that has a greater strength thanks to the controlled thermal process it goes through during fabrication. This material, used for the panel, can withstand severe weather conditions, such as strong wind and thunderstorms as well as torrential downpours.
• Stainless steel: Stainless or galvanized steel is ideal for automatic doors, offering durability and resistance to corrosion. These types of materials can make up the door frame, and because of those corrosion-resistant properties, can resist strong weather.

Integration with Additional Systems

A feature you should also consider when choosing automatic doors is their integration with additional systems. Some examples of additional systems you can integrate with these doors include security systems and advanced motion sensors or access control systems. Each of these systems enhance the security of the modern building or commercial space.

For instance, an integration with a security system, such as an alarm, can deter unauthorized individuals from accessing a modern building or commercial space when the system’s sensor mechanism is activated. The activation of the mechanism alerts security personnel, preparing them to take the right action.

In the case of access control systems, there is the potential to further increase security and this is done through an entry authentication process. For instance, individuals may need to enter a code on a keypad before they can enter the automatic door when the access control system is integrated, keeping unauthorized individuals out of the building.

Final Thoughts on Must-Have Features for Automatic Doors

Automatic doors offer convenience, safety and accessibility to all, and it’s with features such as durability and remote control access, accessibility and safety sensors, that these benefits are enhanced. If you are looking for solutions related to automatic doors or more information, our commercial locksmith services include maintenance.

If your automatic door doesn’t have the right features, and you have found yourself in a circumstance where you may experience an emergency lockout with automatic doors, we also offer 24-hour emergency locksmith services. And we also offer high-security locking services for all your commercial door-locking needs in the Greater Toronto Area. Contact Lock-Up Services, your trusted Toronto commercial locksmith, for automatic door advice and services to keep convenience and security at the forefront of your commercial business or modern building.