Commercial and industrial sliding doors

Sliding doors for the commercial and industrial sector cover buildings like warehouses and factory units through to security doors for retail outlets and offices. There are also high demand applications like farming and agriculture and highly specialist applications like cold rooms, making this sector a very diverse one.

Most commercial sector sliding doors differ from those used in domestic situations in three ways.

Firstly they are larger, secondly they are stronger and heavier, and thirdly they have higher security ratings (locking mechanisms) and are often constructed to be resistant to impacts.

These doors may also be composed of multiple units rather than the typical single panel that is seen in house garages. When this is the case, different panels may slide off either side of the door opening with open door storage on both sides of the entrance. The doors may also slide around the outside of the building rather than take up valuable storage space within it.

Other differences include more powerful and secure motorisation systems, audible warning sound when the door is triggered to open or close, and highly resistant surface finishes that are designed for rough use rather than aesthetics.

Many manufacturers and suppliers of home use sliding garage doors also supply industrial quality equivalents, although some companies specialise solely in this area of the Market.

The disparity in price between a sliding door for a garage and a sliding door for a warehouse or factory unit will represent the differences in build quality, sturdiness and proportions.

Industrial quality sliding doors are not cheap, but they do serve a functional and security conscious purpose and they are probably the best solution when a large secure opening is required in a building.

The term "sliding or folding wall" is used to refer to an internal sliding partition which operates on runners that are generally connected to the ceiling. These are not interchangeable products and have completely different functions.

For information on sliding garage doors for home applications, click this Sliding garage doors link.