As you sit down and are ready to finalize your design or spec, you come across a few items that you’re not quite sure about. You took an educated guess regarding how many cycle counts the doors in your spec should meet. Now that you think of it, you’re wondering if the door needs a hood, or if the application calls for standard door or a high performance rolling door.

If you’ve ever experienced a situation like this, you’re aware of how reassuring it can be to talk to people who know their stuff. At CornellCookson, our dedicated Architectural Design Support (ADS) Team can assist in tackling the challenges above and other issues head-on. We’ve gathered a few answers to some of the most common questions we hear from architects in this week’s blog.

*Please note this is not an exhaustive list. Always reach out to your rolling door manufacturing team and work with the building owner and facility manager to choose the rolling security door that best meets your needs and wants.

Common Questions about Rolling Steel Doors, Specifications, and More

Q: Can I use a master spec for all my projects?

A: Shawn McCormick, Architectural Design Manager – “We wouldn’t recommend this. If you use a master spec, you may ultimately be paying for things you don’t need or accidentally skip over things that you do need.

Each application is different and has its own challenges and benefits, so the spec should reflect that. Updating a specification for each of your projects is a good way to approach the process. If you have a question about your specification or what to include in it, we can help!” 

Q: What is a cycle count?

A: Michael Chapman, Architectural Design Support –  "A cycle count includes the number of cycles (opens and closes) a rolling door will be required to move through after installation. Cycle counts are commonly listed in a number of cycles per day or lifetime cycles.”

Q: How do I know what a door’s cycle counts should be?

A: Eric Elias, Architectural Design Support – “Reach out to the building owner or facility manager for the most accurate cycle count for each door and application. Specifying a high-performance door where it isn’t required can lead to an unnecessary expense when a door with a lower cycle count (up to 20 cycles per day or 50,000 cycles for the lifetime of the door) would work well. In these cases, we’d recommend our standard roll-up service doors.

The same goes for specifying a standard rolling door in place of a high-cycle one where the application calls for it. A parking garage is an example of an application that would require a high-performance door at cycle numbers over 20 per day or 300,000 to 500,000 per lifetime of the door. We have a door that goes up to 1,000,000 cycles as well."

Q: What is the difference between a sprung door and a springless door?

A: John Kehl, Architectural Design Support – “A sprung door has a counter-balanced shaft and spring assembly designed for proper balance of the door to ensure that maximum effort to operate will not exceed 25 pounds."

"A springless door is typically available in high-cycle applications that see upwards of 20 cycles or more a day. Higher cycle options at CornellCookson are available in the 100,000, 300,000, 500,000 ranges. We also offer a high performance door with 1,000,000 cycles. Reach out to us for more information on this.”

You can learn more about rolling door basics and terminology in our primer here: 🔗https://www.cooksondoor.com/blogs/Cookson/2021/03/18/spring-forward!-ready-for-changing-seasons-and-a-rolling-door-spring-primer

Q: If the door I specify is motor-operated, how do I know what the appropriate horsepower should be?

A: Jim Kinney, Architectural Design Support – “Horsepower should be no concern when selecting a motor operator for your door. Our motors are sized appropriately for each size door we make, all you would need to do is tell us the voltage. Our online drawing generator also automatically chooses the correct horsepower for you after you fill out all of the required information.”

🔗Check out our motor operator offerings here: https://www.cornelliron.com/products/operator-information/motor-operators.

Q: Can you explain the difference between R-Value and U-Factor?

A: Jason Millard, Architectural Design Project Manager – “Sure! R-Value and U-Factor are terms related to the thermal resistance of a roll-up door.

• R-Value is the capacity of an insulating material to resist heat flow. The higher the R-Value of a door, the more insulation it contains. R-Value typically only applies to the door curtain.
• U-Factor measures the rate of heat transfer of the entire door assembly, including the guides, head, and hood. U-Factor is a tested number, which means it can be a better energy performance indicator than R-Value alone.”

🔗 Follow this link to discover more about R-Value and U-Factor for rolling doors: https://www.cooksondoor.com/blogs/Cookson/2018/12/13/the-difference-between-r-value-or-u-factor-for-roll-up-doors.

Q: What if I have a question that hasn't been answered here?

A: Chris Stover, Architectural Design Support Sectional Lead – “That’s what we’re here for! Our ADS Team can lend a hand with your specifications, product selection processes, drawings, and more.”

Contact the CornellCookson ADS Team:

💻by email: ArchitecturalDesignSupport@cornellcookson.com

📞by phone: 833.958.1273

For assistance with specs and custom design help, you can also visit our architectural design page:

🔗 https://www.cornelliron.com/architectural-design-homepage

Contact Us   Find a Dealer