Coverage across County Durham
We treat County Durham as one service area for automatic sliding doors, so a site on the edge of the area gets the same written pricing and the same standard of work as one in the busiest town centre. Specialist automatic door engineers working under our management carry out each visit. Choose from the 13 towns below, or contact us with any address.
Towns listed in County Durham: Darlington, Hartlepool, Stockton-on-Tees, Durham, Chester-le-Street, Billingham, Stanley, Consett, Newton Aycliffe, Bishop Auckland, Seaham, Peterlee, Spennymoor.
What to think about for automatic sliding doors in County Durham
- Wind blowing straight at an entrance can make sliding leaves drag or cause the door to open when nobody is there. On exposed frontages across County Durham, a partial opening mode or a draught lobby is worth considering.
- Entrances in County Durham that sit on an escape route need the fire strategy checked before the door is designed, because that decides whether break-out leaves, alarm-linked opening or battery opening are required.
- Power is needed near the head of the door, usually from a fused spur. If there is no supply nearby, allow for an electrician to run one before the fitting day so the door can be commissioned straight away.
- Business park offices around County Durham often have a reception door that is busy for an hour each morning and quiet for the rest of the day. A timer on the programme switch can lock it out of hours without anyone remembering to.
- Shops that use a roller shutter at night need the new header to sit below the shutter box and clear of its guide channels. Both are measured at survey so the door and shutter can work together.
Automatic sliding doors in County Durham: guide prices
The site survey is free, including the measured drawing and a fixed, itemised written quote. Guide price: typically £4,495 to £12,995 ex VAT.
| Item | Guide price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Single-slide door set, about 1.0 to 1.2 m clear opening | £4,495 – £7,995 | framed aluminium and glass, installed, ex VAT |
| Bi-parting door set, about 2 m clear opening, with side screens | £6,995 – £12,995 | installed, ex VAT |
| Large, full-height or heavy-duty entrances | from £14,995 | Priced on survey |
| Break-out leaves and screens for an escape route | £995 – £3,995 | added to a sliding door, ex VAT |
| Touch-free switch or push pad, fitted | £145 – £395 | per switch, ex VAT |
| 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 |
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
- Start with a short enquiry. Use the form, phone or email. Tell us whether the work is a new door, an upgrade or an opener for a home, and we arrange the next step for your site in County Durham.
- Measured survey. The free survey confirms what will fit and what the entrance needs: opening width, door type, activation, safety sensors and behaviour on power loss or fire alarm, matched to how the building is used.
- Written price, no surprises. A fixed, itemised quote sets out the specification, the work involved, the expected lead time and the warranty terms. You can ask questions or change the specification before accepting it.
- Installed and commissioned. The door is installed with as little disruption as possible, then set up and tested for its hazard zones. Before leaving, the engineer explains the controls and hands over the documents for your records.
Use the guide price tool for a quick figure, then book a free survey in County Durham to turn it into a fixed written price you can plan around.
Automatic sliding doors in County Durham: questions
Do we need consent for a new entrance in County Durham?
It depends on the building. A change to how a shopfront looks may need planning permission, and listed buildings may need listed building consent. Your local planning authority decides. We flag the question at survey and can provide drawings and product details to support an application if one is needed.
What is the guide price for automatic sliding doors in County Durham?
Our guide is £4,495 to £12,995 excluding VAT (per door set), the same guide prices we use across the UK. The free site survey in County Durham confirms the price as a fixed, itemised written quote, and the guide price tool gives you a range before anyone visits.
Can you fit a sliding door in County Durham outside our opening hours?
Usually, yes. Many shops and surgeries prefer an early start, an evening or a weekend so the entrance stays open during trading. Out-of-hours work is shown as a separate line in the quote, so you can compare it with a weekday installation and choose whichever suits the business better.
Will a new sliding door in County Durham work with our alarm and access control?
In most cases, yes. The operator can take signals from a fire alarm panel, a card reader, a keypad, an intercom or a timer. Tell us what you have at the survey, and the quote will show the interface work and who is responsible for each connection, whether that is us, your electrician or your alarm company.
What do you need from us for parking and access in County Durham?
Somewhere for the engineer's van as close to the entrance as possible, and a clear working area around the door. If parking is restricted, loading rules apply or the site has security procedures, tell us when you book. Those details go into the plan so the visit is not held up on the day.
What happens once the installation in County Durham 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.
Which building regulations apply to a new automatic entrance in County Durham?
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.