Covering Harlow and nearby
If your building is in Harlow, or anywhere in the CM17, CM18, CM19 and CM20 postcode districts, we can arrange automatic entrance lobbies. Visits are booked with you in advance, timed around opening hours where that matters, and carried out by engineers who work under our management.
Council offices, libraries, leisure centres and other public buildings in Harlow usually buy through procurement rules. Itemised written prices, method statements and the paperwork a buyer needs can all be provided, and the work is carried out by specialist engineers working under our management.
Nearby towns we also list for automatic entrance lobbies (straight-line distance): Hoddesdon (5.4 miles), Ware (6.4 miles), Bishop's Stortford (6.8 miles), Waltham Abbey (7.9 miles), Cheshunt (8.0 miles), Hertford (8.2 miles).
What to think about for automatic entrance lobbies in Harlow
- Office buildings on business parks in Harlow often have a reception desk close to the entrance. Keeping the desk out of line with the doors, and making the lobby deep enough, keeps the receptionist out of the draught.
- Surgeries and clinics in Harlow 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.
- High street units in Harlow often have narrow, shallow shop fronts. An internal lobby may take sales space, so a glazed porch or a sliding outer set with a swing inner set can be a better fit.
- Work on a lobby in Harlow 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.
- 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.
Automatic entrance lobbies in Harlow: 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.
How it works
- Describe what you need. Whether the job is automatic entrance lobbies for a busy entrance or for a single internal door, a brief description and some photos let us understand it and plan a survey visit in Harlow.
- Free visit to the site. An engineer working under our management assesses the opening, the existing door and frame, the floor and the electrical supply, and notes any access, consent or timing issues to plan around.
- Your fixed quotation. The quote is fixed for the work it describes and lists each item, including any removal, making good and electrical work. It also states the lead time, the payment stages and the warranty terms.
- Fitting and sign-off. Work goes ahead on dates agreed with you. Once fitted, the door is adjusted and its safety functions are tested and recorded with reference to BS EN 16005, and you are shown how to use it.
Planning a refit or a new entrance in Harlow? Get in touch early and we will quote the lobby as one package with the rest of the entrance.
Automatic entrance lobbies in Harlow: questions
Do you design lobbies for new buildings in Harlow?
Yes. We can work from the architect's drawings, suggest door types and depth, and quote the doors, screens and controls as one package for the main contractor or the client. Designing the lobby in at the start is usually simpler and cheaper than adding it later.
What do you charge for automatic entrance lobbies in Harlow?
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 Harlow confirms the price as a fixed, itemised written quote, and the guide price tool gives you a range before anyone visits.
Can you look after the lobby doors in Harlow after installation?
We can arrange planned servicing for both door sets, checking sequencing, safety sensors and alarm releases at each visit and leaving a written record. Servicing is charged per visit, and the price is confirmed in writing before an engineer comes out.
Can the lobby doors in Harlow be locked at night?
Yes. The outer set is usually locked out of hours, and the inner set can be locked too. Locks and any access control are wired to release on the fire alarm where the fire strategy requires, and the settings are recorded at handover.
Do I need permission from a landlord or the council before work in Harlow?
It depends on the building. Tenants usually need the landlord's written consent before changing an entrance, and some changes to a shopfront or external door need planning permission. The survey notes anything that may need consent. We can supply drawings and product details to support an application, but the owner or tenant makes it.
Can automatic doors be fitted to a listed building in Harlow?
Often, yes, but listed building consent is normally needed for changes that affect the character of the building, inside or out. Slim operators, concealed fixings and automating the existing door can all reduce the visual impact. Speak to the conservation officer at the local planning authority early; we can provide drawings and specifications to help.
Which building regulations apply to a new automatic entrance in Harlow?
In England the guidance is Approved Document M (Volume 2) for access, Approved Document B for fire safety and escape routes, and Approved Document K for glazing and powered doors. A new entrance can count as building work, so building control should be involved before it is ordered.