Coverage across Bedfordshire
For automatic entrance lobbies anywhere in Bedfordshire, you deal with one contracting party and one written price. We organise the visit, brief the engineer, who works under our management, and keep the paperwork together afterwards. Below you will find the towns we list in this part of England, 5 in all; if your address sits outside them, the arrangements are exactly the same.
Towns listed in Bedfordshire: Luton, Bedford, Dunstable, Leighton Buzzard, Kempston.
What to think about for automatic entrance lobbies in Bedfordshire
- Work on a lobby in Bedfordshire takes longer than a door swap. Ask for the programme in writing, including which entrance stays usable each day and any out-of-hours working.
- Surgeries and clinics in Bedfordshire need lobbies wide and deep enough for wheelchairs, mobility scooters and people with walking frames. Avoid interlocks at public entrances unless there is a strong security reason for them.
- Two operators mean two power supplies, or one supply sized for both. Check whether there is a suitable supply at ceiling height, as cable runs across a finished foyer add cost.
- Measure the depth you can give the lobby before settling on a layout. A lobby that is too shallow lets both sets open together and loses most of its benefit.
- Entrances in Bedfordshire that face the prevailing wind lose the most heat and take the most rain. A deeper lobby, or a right-angle layout that turns the inner doors away from the wind, makes the biggest difference there.
Automatic entrance lobbies in Bedfordshire: guide prices
The site survey is free, including the measured drawing and a fixed, itemised written quote. Guide price: typically £14,995 to £34,995 ex VAT.
| Item | Guide price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Draught lobby: two sets of automatic sliding doors and glazed screens | £14,995 – £34,995 | doors and screens, installed, ex VAT |
| Lobby with curtain walling or building work | Priced on survey | larger public-sector lobbies have cost £50,000 or more |
| Card or fob reader tied into the door | £795 – £2,495 | per door, ex VAT |
| Battery backup for power-cut operation | £395 – £695 | per door, ex VAT |
Lobby prices cover the doors and glazed screens. Building work, flooring, heating and curtain walling are priced on survey.
Standards and rules in England
Building regulations guidance in England (Approved Document M, Volume 2) says a powered opening system should be used where a self-closing entrance door would need more than 30 N at the leading edge to open, or more than 22.5 N between 30° and 60°, and expects external doors used by the public in new buildings to give at least 1000 mm of effective clear width.
In Great Britain a new or converted powered door must meet the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 before it is first used, and can carry the UKCA or the CE marking. Workplace law (the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992) expects powered doors to have suitable and effective features to stop them trapping anyone and, where needed for safety, to open by hand unless they open automatically if the power fails. Doors at work must also be kept in efficient working order under a suitable system of maintenance.
Under the Equality Act 2010, service providers and employers must make reasonable adjustments for disabled people, which can include altering a physical feature such as a heavy entrance door. New entrances and some alterations count as building work, so check with building control before the work is ordered.
How it works
- Send photos and the address. A few pictures of the door from both sides, the address in Bedfordshire and a note of who uses the entrance help us understand the job before anyone visits the site.
- No-cost survey on site. We arrange a survey at a time that suits the building. The engineer records measurements, fixings and power, plus any constraints such as listed status, opening hours or access for deliveries.
- Itemised quote to approve. We price every element of the work on automatic entrance lobbies separately in a written quote that you can check, share and approve. Lead time and payment stages are stated, and nothing is ordered until you accept.
- Fit, test and hand over. On the agreed dates the engineer installs the equipment, commissions the operator and tests each safety function. You get a demonstration, the test record and any conformity paperwork that applies to the work.
Want a warmer, cleaner entrance in Bedfordshire? Send us a few photos and the opening sizes, and we will arrange a site survey and a written quote.
Automatic entrance lobbies in Bedfordshire: questions
Can you add a lobby to our existing entrance in Bedfordshire?
Usually, if there is enough depth inside the existing doors or room for a glazed porch outside. We check the space, the floor and the power at the free survey, then quote either an inner set to pair with your current doors or a complete new lobby.
What price range should I expect for automatic entrance lobbies in Bedfordshire?
Our guide is £14,995 to £34,995 excluding VAT (per lobby, doors and screens), the same guide prices we use across the UK. The free site survey in Bedfordshire confirms the price as a fixed, itemised written quote, and the guide price tool gives you a range before anyone visits.
Will an automatic lobby in Bedfordshire need planning permission?
An internal lobby often leaves the outside of the building unchanged, but a glazed porch or new frontage may need planning permission, and a listed building may need consent for either. We point out likely approvals at survey so they can be sorted before anything is ordered.
Will our entrance in Bedfordshire have to close while the lobby is built?
Not for the whole job in most cases. We plan the order of work so one set of doors, or a temporary door, keeps the entrance usable, and agree any out-of-hours working in the quote. A short closure may be needed when the final set is commissioned.
What happens once the installation in Bedfordshire is finished?
The engineer tests every function, including the safety sensors and the behaviour on power loss, and sets the door up with reference to BS EN 16005. You are shown how to use the controls and which simple checks to make, and you receive the handover documents, including the test record and any conformity paperwork that applies to the work.
Can installation in Bedfordshire happen outside opening hours?
Yes. Many shops, surgeries and offices prefer work early in the morning, in the evening or at weekends, when the entrance is quietest. Tell us your constraints when you enquire and they are built into the plan. Any extra cost for out-of-hours work is shown in the written quote rather than added afterwards.
Who is responsible for automatic doors on escape routes in Bedfordshire?
Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 the responsible person for the premises must make sure escape routes work and fire safety equipment is maintained. Automatic doors on an escape route need fail-safe opening or break-out, set by the fire strategy.