Architecture and building design are about creating spaces to enrich lives, yet they can be disconnected from the people most directly impacted. Users may be faced with situations which are uncomfortable and even unusable.

National and supranational regulations often require an accessibility ethos in new-build or retrofit projects, in order to avoid such situations. These increasingly require inclusive building design, which should be people centric and create spaces which respond to every user’s needs. These users — whether employees, visitors or customers — will notice the difference. The UK’s BS 8300 standard and, at the European level, newly minted standard EN 17210:2021 showcase design guidelines for an inclusive built environment.

The UK’s Ministry of Local Government also funds an Inclusive Environments professional development course. According to the spec, inclusive design is the responsibility of everyone who works in the built environment: planners, those who commission new buildings and places, access consultants, designers, architects, engineers, surveyors, property owners and facilities managers.

Doors play an important part in our lives. They are the portals between our different worlds. For inclusive building access, the comfortable operation of exterior and interior doors is essential.

Potential barriers to building access and free movement are not always obvious. An inclusion audit, covering building doors and their daily traffic, can help businesses identify problem access points and the means to correct them. Doors which require significant force to push or pull open are one major and recurring problem for inclusive access. At almost any of these — and fire doors especially — installing the right closer will make use safe and effortless, and users more comfortable.

A properly closed door has advantages beyond inclusion. It creates a thermal seal to prevent energy waste, contributing to Nearly Zero Energy Building targets for new and existing properties. Fully closed doors are better soundproofed, too.

“For security and facility managers, tasked with keeping everyone safe, doors must close securely to work with a building’s access control system. Even the most sophisticated security system will not secure an open door,” explains Andreas Gmelin, Product Management and Business Development Director Door Closers at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions EMEIA. “And, of course, secure closing is required by fire regulations almost everywhere.

“Yet not all door closers are created equal,” Gmelin adds. “Doors fitted with a premium mechanical technology like Cam-Motion and guiderails are pleasant to the eye and comfortable to open. In real-world use, they provide more ergonomic opening for everyone who passes through them — a major benefit for safety and inclusion.”

The Cam-Motion advantage
Unlike traditional rack-and-pinion door closers, Cam technology combined with a guiderail provides the most ergonomic opening — also eliminating projecting link arms with an aesthetically pleasing solution.

Cam-Motion technology does the heavy lifting, so building users don’t have to. Required opening force falls much more rapidly with Cam-Motion than with a traditional rack-and-pinion guiderail. Cam-Motion’s innovative technology mirrors the power of a human elbow, which also reduces sharply as the arm extends.

Cam-Motion Door Closers have independent valves, enabling latch and closing speeds to be set independently. Back-check functionality stops doors damaging walls and surrounding areas. Furthermore, these valves are thermo-resistant: Once all door speeds are set, they stay set — even at extreme temperatures.

Effortless upgrade path
The Assa Abloy Opening Solutions range of Cam-Motion Door Closers is designed for convenient, effortless upgrading at almost every door. Between them, just two models — the DC500 and DC700 — can equip almost any door, of any size.

A symmetric Cam design allows each model to be fitted to the door or frame, push or pull side. This saves designers’ and architects’ time at specification stage. Aesthetic consistency across the range — for single or double doors, in multiple finishes — promotes clean, appealing interior design.

From an installer’s point of view, a universal concealed mounting plate across the entire Assa Abloy Opening Solutions portfolio speeds up installation and puts in place an easy, future-proof upgrade path. Any access point’s changing use over the building lifetime is easily accommodated, because switching closers is easy. And a spindle with up to 14mm height adjustment means small measurement errors during installation are quickly corrected.