What Type of Industrial Door Should You Install for Your Warehouse?

Before you choose doors for your warehouse, there are a number of factors to look at. It’s not as simple as just selecting a door, you need to take a few things into consideration first. Keep in mind that you will likely need more than one door, too, since most warehouses and buildings have multiple entrances.

So read on to find out more about different types of industrial doors and factors to consider when choosing one.



What Sort of Door Do You Need?

The big question is what you’ll be using the door for and what the warehouse will be used for. This will determine the door style you need. For example, if you’ll be doing a lot of loading products onto lorries and trailers, you will need doors that can be rolled up or slid out of the way to allow for rapid movement of the product. If you intend to drive vehicles into the warehouse, the doors need to be large enough to accommodate that.

There are plenty of other factors to consider, including:

●     Daily Traffic - How much foot traffic is in the area will affect the type of door you choose. On average, warehouse doors open and close up to 100 times a day and this means you need an opening mechanism that will make this quick and easy to do. It’s also important that you choose a door that can be opened and closed rapidly. If your employees are waiting for a door to open, they’re losing time. This is particularly true if it happens hundreds of times a day.

●     Open or closed - If you intend to leave the warehouse doors open during the day, for whatever reason, you will need a door that stays open without needing a member of staff to hold it.

●     Safety - While your clients and employees will be coming and going constantly, safety is of the utmost importance. The last thing you want is for a door to slam shut on someone. If it lifts up, then it also needs to have brakes in order to prevent it from falling on someone. Swinging doors and automatic sliding doors need sensors to prevent them from closing on someone. A locking mechanism can ensure your building is safe at all times, especially if you’re storing valuable goods overnight.

●     Size - The size of the door is very important if you want it to be functional. Again, this will depend on what your warehouse is used for. If you intend to drive a lorry into the warehouse, you need a door that can accommodate this. If it’s merely going to have crates of product coming out, you can opt for smaller doors. Measure carefully to ensure you are getting the right size.

●     Features - As your employees move through the warehouse, what will they be doing? Are their hands full? Do they have substances on them? If these are the cases, you should look into doors that open with a push bar or levers to make it simple to get around even if you can’t use your hands. Another feature that you may want is a window so you can see if someone is coming from the other side to avoid collisions.

●     Cost - The installation of the door is one cost, but it’s the ongoing cost of running the door that you should be considering. Not only the energy it uses to open and close but the energy to maintain temperature if you have a cold room.

Types of Warehouse Doors

Once you are fairly certain of your needs in a door, it’s time to find the perfect choice. Fortunately, there’s something for every need, so you’re quite likely to find exactly what you need.

Roller Shutter Doors

When it comes to security, you can’t go wrong with roller shutter doors. These doors are designed to pull down from overhead as roller doors and they can be used as the actual door or you can use them over your existing doors as an extra layer of security. Since you don’t always need to roll up the entire door, it’s helpful to have a small door to walk through that is just for workers, as opposed to loads of product. This can also help keep the temperature regulated easier if only a small door is opening.

If it’s extra security you’re looking for, you can also add security grilles in front of your warehouse. These will give you a little extra theft prevention and can look great, as well.

Steel Hinged Doors

For the best in security, these sturdy doors prevent anyone you don’t want inside from getting in. They’re excellent at preventing theft. Thanks to the steel used for both doors and hinges, you’ll find that you are well protected with a steel hinged door. Not only are they useful against thieves, but they also do an excellent job of keeping out extreme weather.

Sliding Doors

Another option for your warehouse is using sliding doors. These simply slide behind the wall without taking up any real space. If you plan to leave the door open throughout the day, a sliding door is an excellent choice. However, you can also get sliding automatic doors, much like the ones in a shopping centre. These just slide open as you approach and that makes them perfect for employees who are carrying or wheeling large loads and can’t open the doors easily.

Sliding doors are a great choice for spaces where you have a lot of people coming and going. They’re also ideal for the front of the building, where your clients usually come in. The automatic doors give the space a little more sophisticated feel compared to a more industrial style.

Sectional Doors

These doors are designed to be as energy-efficient as possible, so they’re a good choice for warehouses that are climate-controlled. If you want to have extra control over internal temperatures, you can opt for insulated sectional doors.

You may want to add windows to your sectional doors to allow natural light to come in. The windows also allow you to see if someone is standing outside and needs to come in. Again, these doors can have smaller personal doors set into them to eliminate the need to open the entire door just so a couple of people can get through.

High-Speed Doors

As previously mentioned, you waste a lot of time waiting for doors to open and close. High-speed doors give you rapid access to a space and they’re equipped with safety measures to prevent anyone from getting hurt as you go rapidly through the door.

This type of door is ideal if you have a climate-controlled room since you waste more and more energy trying to keep it at a steady temperature when the door is opening and closing constantly. However, if it’s moving quickly, there will be minimal change to the air temperature.

Fire Doors

Do you need fire doors? These doors are usually used between spaces within the warehouse. They are built to hold fire and smoke back, so you can get everyone out. The doors must be custom built in order to fit the doorway absolutely perfectly. The fit must be so tight that smoke can’t get through any gaps around it. As soon as smoke can get through, so can fire.

When you install fire doors, you should consider where your employees usually are and how they tend to move around the building. Where should you move everyone to keep them safe if they can’t get to the exit? These are so many factors that it is usually a good idea to have an expert in fire safety come in and look at the building and give you advice on where to put the fire doors and how to fireproof the safe rooms, as well.

The actual fire resistance of the doors will depend on our needs. The doors are offered based on how long they can withstand the smoke and fire. You can choose which one is best for the risk level in your warehouse. A seafood warehouse, for example, will not be nearly as likely to burn as a warehouse full of flammable chemicals. Choose your door accordingly.

Thoroughbred Industrial Doors

Now that you have a better idea of what your warehouse door needs are and you are aware of the various types of doors, it’s time to talk to the experts. At Thoroughbred Doors, we specialise in just that, doors. Contact us today to discuss your project with us.