The world’s commercial door industry is expected to be worth about £49.1 billion by 2025. The commercial sector covers a wide area of door types used for security and safety purposes, as well as for heavy traffic.
Offices, schools, and retail areas use doors specifically designed for these locations and the people using them. Retail units require special doors to protect glass shopfronts, while warehouses need doors that can provide some insulation while also giving quick access to forklifts and workers.
What are the different types of commercial doors available, why are they necessary, and could they be used in a home at all?
What are commercial doors?
Commercial doors might be built for strength and security. In this case, they may be built from steel to prevent access from would-be intruders. Or, a commercial door might just be a quality-built door for an office environment.
Typically, there are four types of commercial doors:
- Scissor gates
- Roll-ups
- Fire-rated doors
- Overhead doors
However, there are swing doors, and standard doors that are either glazed or solid that can be used in a workplace. There are plenty of options for commercial doors for your office too.
You can expect to see types of commercial doors in car parks, banks, hospitals, and factories. And below, you can read what benefits they bring and what makes them necessary.
Commercial doors are more durable
Commonly, hollow core doors are used in residential properties, and these work just fine. The internal doors in most houses are constructed by filling a frame with a cardboard honeycomb interior or waste paper and then covering it with fibreboard or veneer.
Hollow core doors are fine for use in a home, but in a workplace environment, something more durable is often needed. The problem with hollow core doors is they can be damaged very easily.
A solid core wood door will be able to weather all of life’s knocks including being slammed by office workers on bad days. Wood has a strength-to-weight ratio of 20% higher than structural steel. And wood is sustainable, stores carbon, and is renewable.
They come in a range of materials
Commercial doors don’t only come in wood. Doors built for workplaces can come in wood, steel, fibreglass, and glass with aluminium.
They will be strong and solidly built
The term, commercial door, often relates to the type of doors seen in factories and warehouses. But, commercial doors are used in offices and schools too. They tend to be solid doors that can take a beating, and they add extra security.
With so many UK employees working remotely now, there is a need for extra security in home offices. Adding a commercial office door to your remote working space might add security to your home this coming summer.
They have glazed options
Glazed commercial doors are perfect for industrial kitchens or restaurants where there is constant movement and safety is a prime concern.
Even fire-rated doors can have windows as long as the technical specifications match regulations.
They can increase safety
Speaking of fire, commercial doors can protect property and workers in the event of a fire. The current fire door regulations in the UK stipulate that protective doors must be fitted in any room that has the potential for a fire.
Fire doors keep escape routes safe for use, and help to contain fires and stop them from spreading.
They can be wheelchair accessible
Wheelchair users have concerns with many types of doors and access to buildings in general. Commercial doors are usually wider than regular door frames allowing easier access for wheelchair users.
Plus, many commercial doors can be fitted with motion sensors for automated opening and closing making life easier for all employees.
Wheelchair friendly doors are also available for residential buildings and can be fitted into homes the same as they are in commercial sites.
They can increase security
Steel doors are not only fire-resistant, but they are perhaps the strongest type of door available. Commercial steel doors are incredibly durable, environmentally friendly, and excellent at improving security.
One study showed that commercial properties in the UK suffered 103,391 burglaries. The third most common crime experienced by commercial operations is burglary (10%).
Commercial doors improve security and reduce the risk of burglary. Retail units and banks favour scissor gate doors to protect glass fronts. And solid core office doors can be fitted with hefty deadbolts and smart entry access systems.
Summary
The term, commercial door, conjures up industrial-type doors for warehouses and factories. While this is true, there are also commercial doors fitted in schools, hospitals, and offices.
Many commercial doors would work in houses too to add security to a home office for instance. In the workplace though, commercial doors are needed for safety in the event of a fire, or to stop accidents in restaurants and kitchens.
