When it comes to Overhead Rolling Doors and Grilles, we are the experts in innovative door solutions!
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Our world is changing. Quickly. Exponential population growth
around the globe is fueling urbanization. At the same time, car ownership continues to increase despite the popularity of ride-sharing services and better public transportation options than ever before. The architecture, design and construction
industries have an increasingly difficult job of creating cohesive, livable and safe places for us to live, work and shop.
This is no simple task, especially when it comes to addressing parking garage design, advanced closure solutions and parking gate systems.
Nearly 56% of the world’s population lives in urban areas. That number is expected to grow, with almost seven out of every 10 people living in cities by 2050. Combine this with projected global population growth figures, and we can expect a total of 4.4 billion people in cities and metropolitan areas around the world by the middle of the century. At the same time, there are 1.47 billion cars on the planet, with many experts anticipating that number to increase as well.
While the majority of these increases will likely take place in Asia and Africa, city and regional planners around the United States and Canada are working ahead to incorporate growth in sustainable and intelligent ways.
One way is creating mixed-use developments that capitalize on the renaissance of inner-city neighborhoods.
“People have a 20-minute urban concept in their mind,” said Heather Bender, Director of Commercial Product Marketing for Cornell. “They want stores, restaurants, schools, and even their place of employment within twenty minutes of their home. This new sense of urban community gives property developers and urban planners a unique opportunity to provide residents all the benefits of a suburban community in an urban environment, but with the safety and security of a residential neighborhood.”
In these mixed-use facilities, the biggest challenge is incorporating both commercial and residential design. The first and second floors tend to be commercial spaces leased out to tenants, followed by residential floors. Several levels of parking decks often serve as the buffer between the two in downtown areas. But how do you address parking demands for each part of the facility? It’s a challenging situation.
Considering the average size of an American apartment is decreasing, this means that there are also more units within the same size residential or mixed-use building compared to 10 years ago. While urbanization and public transportation often go hand-in-hand, Americans love their cars, trucks, and SUVs, even in urban areas. This translates to more cars per building, crammed into smaller and smaller spaces.
Among the many decisions designers must make to achieve more space is whether one-way or two-way traffic flow is more suitable. They also need to consider aspects like pedestrian traffic and the user type. For example, retail facilities will have more turnover than traditional offices and residences, where people may come and go just twice daily.
With the myriad of factors dictating parking garage design in urbanizing environments, it’s clear that closure solution technology, and the companies that create it, have a lot of expectations to live up to. So how are they addressing these new and changing needs?
Rolling door and security grille manufacturers are in the unique position to address global, national, and regional/local trends. Manufacturers like Cornell have developed high-performance rolling grilles that blend see-through access with the durability and longevity of rolling doors.
“Security grilles, as opposed to doors, allow users to see cars and people on the other side of the closure,” said Bender. “Rolling security grilles give a fresh-air, open feeling, and there’s a big boost in circulation that helps to vent carbon dioxide.”
Architects and building owners prefer security grilles for non-conditioned spaces as well. Thanks to an increased interest in biophilic design, parking garages are expected to incorporate brightness, openness, and natural light.
“Parking in commercial buildings, institutions, retail buildings, and hospitality facilities each have unique demands,” explained Bender. “While the world is becoming increasingly urbanized and American cities are seeing a growth in mixed-use facilities, we have to design for everything from big to small, surface lot to underground parking complex.”
In an urban hotel, for example, parking garages are typically accessed by a key fob or key card associated with a guest’s room. The same goes for office building employees with an active ID. However, as more and more hotels and even offices adopt smartphone-enabled keyless entry systems, rolling door and security grille manufacturers have needed to innovate in tandem.
Another major task for manufacturers is creating low-headroom closure systems that can be installed in existing buildings, parking structures, and other facilities. By reducing the bulkhead size, they help architects and designers meet the 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design, which states that parking structure openings must provide 98” of clearance for lifted vans.
A traditional rolling security grille wraps around the shaft at 45-degree angles. It continues to stack and stack until the security grille is fully rolled up into the head unit, creating a significant number of voids and a large coil. By decreasing those angles, new products are able to reduce the number of voids and tighten the coil in the process. This design flexibility makes innovative solutions good for retrofits where overhead clearance is limited.
Security grilles offer many advantages for mixed-use urban property owners and managers.
Grilles provide a physical barrier that shows you take property security seriously. Their presence can help deter potential thieves or vandals from entering the area and causing damage to the facilities or vehicles. You can also use these to lock down your property should a dangerous event occur. These solutions also help limit access only to authorized individuals and promote efficient traffic flow.
In mixed-use properties, users have different access needs. Commercial tenants may operate on extended hours or a traditional office schedule. Similarly, residents may work odd shifts or come and go at irregular hours. A security grille makes it possible to permit access 24/7 to accommodate everyone's needs.
Durable security grilles are ruggedly constructed for the long term, with some options offering up to 1 million cycles to maximize your return on investment. These closure solutions also require minimal maintenance beyond routine checks, saving you even more. Since they work around the clock, you can also reduce labor costs since gate attendants are not needed as often.
Additionally, many property insurance carriers reward their customers with a discount for installing security measures like grilles. Your agent can tell you if your grille qualifies your property for lower premiums and how much you can expect to save.
Modern grilles offer robust security without sacrificing property aesthetics. There are numerous ways to customize them, from patterns to colors. You can easily create a look that seamlessly harmonizes with your structure's exterior to maintain its visual appeal.
Complex challenges require complex solutions and rolling door and security grille manufacturers are working hard to address future parking needs today.
The innovative designs and technology that result are already allowing the A&D community to help building owners, facility managers and property developers create efficient and safe solutions for a variety of building occupants. The future of
parking is now.
Want more information? See our full line of high-performance security grilles. Still need help choosing a grille? Contact us online or call us at (800) 233-8366 to speak with an expert!