As you can imagine hospitals demand the highest standards of cleanliness and hygiene, but equipment for modern hospitals also needs to be efficient, and cost effective. These are some of the things that we had to keep in mind when designing our new range of crash doors, as well as the following design requirements:
Durability
For most domestic and commercial applications, the weight of doors is not that important. However, when it comes to hospital PVC crash doors weight is really important as they need to be robust enough to deal with the frequency of people travelling through the door, the speed at which they are moving through the door and the way that the door is opened. For example, a door that is within an Accident & Emergency Department will have to deal with high speed and high-frequency traffic at all hours of the day and night and the door should open quickly as well.
The way that people are navigating through the crash door is a significant thing to consider as well. In a hospital, you will see lots of nurses and porters wheeling beds, trolleys and wheelchairs around and using their heels, shoulders or even backsides to open doors so they can steer the patient through successfully. Trying to open a heavy door while pushing, towing or carrying something is quite hard to do and can cause strain on employees and affect the effectiveness of the hospital overall.
Material
Timber doors are now a thing of the past, thankfully, with PVC allowing us to create one piece doors which are lightweight yet strong. Our crash doors also contain thermal insulation which can help hospitals save on heating bills and air conditioning, on top of increasing efficiency and safety.
The other significant benefit of PVC crash doors to hospitals is that they are more hygienic than other options, and we all know how important hygiene in hospitals is. The panels we use in our doors have no joints or gaps, and so don't allow moisture to pass through. This is crucial in hospitals so that the doors do not harbour undesirable pathogens which can cause Surgical Site Infections.
Speed
As we have touched on before, speed is essential in a hospital environment as every decision taken needs to be lightning fast as response times can often make the difference between life and death. The speed that a swing door opens at depends a lot on its weight and the force applied to it. By keeping the weight of the door to a minimum by using PVC you can immediately increase the speed at which it opens meaning traffic is unimpeded whatever direction it is travelling in.
If you would like to find out more about our range of crash doors, please give us a call on 0333 999 7171 or send us an email to sales@stripcurtainsdirect.co.uk
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