When you’re running a busy warehouse, logistics hub or factory, you need a door system that works as hard as your team does. That’s where industrial overhead sectional doors come in useful. These doors are tough, well-insulated and built for high-traffic environments.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through what overhead sectional doors are, how they work and why so many industrial businesses choose to install them.
What are industrial sectional overhead doors?
Industrial sectional doors (also known as overhead doors) are large doors made from wide horizontal panels. These panels are hinged together.
The door opens vertically, with the panels curving and sliding up along tracks. It then lies flat along your ceiling or along the wall above the doorway.
Industrial sectional doors don’t swing outwards and they don’t need any clearance in front of the door. They’re most commonly used in places like:
- Warehouses and distribution centres
- Manufacturing plants
- Vehicle workshops and garages
- Cold storage and food production units
They’re often insulated, automated and built to withstand frequent use.
Key features of an industrial sectional door
Here’s what you can expect when you install industrial sectional overhead doors on your business premises.
Insulated panels
Most sectional doors come with foam-filled insulated panels. This helps you maintain a comfortable temperature in your business premises, which is particularly useful if you manage a temperature-controlled space.
A tight seal
Industrial sectional overhead doors are designed to seal tightly around the frame. This helps to keep out rain, wind and dust — and it improves energy efficiency, too. It also helps to reduce noise pollution escaping from your building.
Space saving
Because an industrial sectional door opens vertically and comes to rest above your doorway or along your ceiling, it takes up minimal usable space within your building. It doesn’t reduce the size of your doorway or swing outwards. This is a big plus in busy yards or loading areas.
Durable and secure
Sectional doors are built to last. They’re most often made from galvanised and coated steel or aluminium. Their construction makes them hard to force open. And they’re also available with reinforced panels, advanced locking systems and anti-lift features.
Automated or manual
Depending on your budget and requirements, you can choose industrial sectional doors with either manual or automated operation. An automated door system uses a remote control, keypad or sensors to open and close. You can also get high-speed sectional doors, great for high-traffic areas.
Customisation options
Sectional doors are available in a variety of colour finishes to match the branding of a building. You have the option to add vision panels. This lets natural light into your building and helps to improve safety in places where visibility is important. You can also add integrated doors for pedestrian access if necessary.
Safety features
The best industrial sectional overhead doors are fitted with safety features that help to prevent injuries. Spring brake devices prevent the door from shutting at high speed in the event of a system failure, while safety edges automatically stop the door from opening if a person or equipment is in its path.
Available in a variety of sizes
Work with an experienced industrial door manufacturer, and you can get industrial sectional doors to fit almost any size of doorway. They can be manufactured to a specified size and assembled and installed on site.
How do industrial sectional doors compare to roller shutters?
There are various types of industrial doors to choose from. The primary alternative to sectional overhead doors, for large industrial doorways, is a roller shutter door.
A roller shutter door is made from narrow slats that roll up into a compact coil above a doorway. Like an industrial sectional overhead door, it’s usually made from steel or aluminium.
So should you choose a sectional overhead door or a roller shutter? Here are some key differences between the two.
- Operation. Sectional doors tend to open more smoothly and quietly than roller doors. Both roller shutters and sectional doors are available with manual or automatic operation.
- Insulation. Because sectional doors are made from fewer panels, they offer better insulation than roller doors.
- Space. Sectional overhead doors require space above your doorway or along your ceiling. Roller doors coil into a roll above the doorway.
- Appearance. You can get both roller shutters and sectional overhead doors in a variety of colours. But only sectional doors are available with vision panels.
- Security. Both roller shutters and sectional overhead doors offer excellent security.
- Cost. Overhead sectional doors tend to be more expensive than roller shutters.
If you have the budget and the space — and insulation, appearance and easy operation are important to you — a sectional overhead door is a solid choice.
Maintenance and servicing for industrial sectional doors
Like any industrial door system, sectional overhead doors require regular maintenance and servicing if they’re to stay in top working order.
How often you service your industrial doors will depend upon the manufacturer’s recommendations, the intensity of use and the risk to health and safety if the equipment is to fail.
Generally, electronic sectional doors pose a greater health and safety risk than manual sectional doors. There are also more components that could go wrong. So electronic doors require more regular servicing — at least every six months and with checks in between.
Stay on top of servicing and maintenance, and your industrial sectional overhead doors will continue to work well for years to come.
Industrial sectional overhead doors from SDS
If you’re considering industrial sectional overhead doors for your business, Secure Door Systems can help. Working from our HQ in Stockport, we manufacture, supply, install and maintain sectional doors in industrial premises up and down the UK.
With a wide range of customisation options and doors to fit pretty much any doorway, we’ll help you find industrial sectional doors that keep your building secure and keep business operations running smoothly.
Get in touch with the SDS team to chat about your sectional door options — or to get a no-obligation quote.
