Clearview National September 2016 - Issue 178 | Page 28

DOCQ&PAS 24

The Door Sweet Spot
»»DAN SULLIVAN, MANAGING
Director of DOORCO, discusses how
manufacturers need to continue to invest
so customers have access to purpose-driven
innovation that ensures legislative compliance
and also brings new sales opportunities…
“I was talking to a retailer recently who told
me that he couldn’t remember the last time
he’d sold a houseful of replacement windows.
Everything has been focused on demand for
doors for his business over the last 12 months.
While he may have slightly exaggerated the
situation, nobody can argue that the door
sector, especially composite doors, is currently
thriving and is now a core focus for many
fabricators and installers. Partly driven by
consumer demand, and partly by innovation in
product development at the top of the supply
chain, we’ve reached the door sweet spot. And
the market is continuing to evolve with brand
new product launches, like DOORCO’s new
ultimate door range in Autumn, and, of course
we can’t forget about more stringent standards
impacting the industry with the Approved
Document Q October deadline.”
PART Q READY
“At the time of writing, we’ve almost reached
the point at which exemptions to the amended
Approved Document Q no longer apply, as any
work which passed planning approval before
1st October last year and was therefore exempt,
must begin on site prior to 1st October 2016.
If it doesn’t, then it may be a case of back to the
drawing board when it comes to planning, as you
will need to ensure that all products comply.
The facts:
• The amended Document Q states that all
doors and windows for use in new build
projects must be “manufactured to a design
that has been shown by test to meet the
security requirements of British Standards
publication PAS24:2012.”
• Under PAS24:2012 “any glazing which, if
broken would allow someone to insert their
hand and release the locking device on the
inside of the door should be a minimum
of class P1A in accordance with BS EN
356:2000. Double- or triple-glazed units
need to incorporate only one pane of classP1A glass.”
• To achieve a P1A classification, this glass
needs to be at least 6.8mm laminated, not
toughened.

28 » SE P 2016 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M

“DOORCO has long been prepared for the
new and more rigid security standards, thanks
to investment more than two years ago in the
production of a new breed of composite doors
– one of which (the Combi door) even allows
multiple door styles to be created from one
design. Crucially, this new breed incorporates
significantly improved security features across
the board and we rolled out the enhanced
security door as standard even before the Part
Q grace period in October 2015.
“We’ve all seen the videos demonstrating
non-compliant doors with intruders cutting
through unsecured slabs in under a minute
and a half. Thanks to the substantial, thicker
skins as standard on the DOORCO door,
our doors withstood the pre-requisite 3
minutes during our PAS24 cut through test
at BM TRADA. Additionally, our door range,
including fire doors, is one of the few foam
filled composite door ranges that can pass key/
key and key/thumb tests.”
A FISTFUL OF FIRSTS
“Customers tell us DOORCO is associated
with firsts. We were the first manufacturer to
launch Part Q compliant doors as standard
way ahead of the deadline. We were able to
do this because we invest upfront at the start
of the manufacturing process in DOORCO
Korea. One ongoing investment due for
launch later this year is something that we
know is absolutely right for current markets.
Reflecting the trend towards contemporary
living and the growth in aluminium home
improvement products, our product
development team is putting the final touches
to our new contemporary flush door design.
With the growing aluminium market, GRP
needs to advance in order not to lose out
and our new door will match high end
contemporary aluminium windows and doors
in terms of aesthetics. Another innovation,
which is still in the R&D stage, is the hybrid
concept, which we brought to the FIT Show
in order to gain some all-important customer
feedback. We’re confident that the door,
which has a solid timber and foam core, is set
to perfectly meet the demands of the retail
market.
View the cut through video at: https://
youtu.be/OWpZUlHeO8k
www.door-co.com