Any successful business owner or manager knows first impressions matter. But do you know where a lot of customers get their first impression of your business? From your doors.
Automatic doors that make loud noises or create bottlenecks by opening erratically can make your customers think they’re entering a business that cuts corners.
That’s one reason we recommend working with a qualified door installer, one that specializes in commercial doors and has the proper training and knowledge to do the job right — and the commitment to stand behind the work.
Certified Vs Non-Certified Commercial Door Installers
How do you know whether your door technicians are properly certified? You can ask them about the following certifications:
AAADM Certification
AAADM stands for American Association of Automatic Door Manufacturers. AAADM trains and certifies automatic door technicians, teaching technicians about every component of automatic doors.
AAADM-certified technicians can also inspect existing doors for safety and reliability. Any repair person can put a Band-aid on door problems. A certified door technician can find the root cause of the problem and make sure it doesn’t keep coming back.
SafeDoorPM
Planning regular maintenance to your business’s automatic doors can prevent downtime and costly repairs. The SafeDoorPM program builds regular door maintenance into your business’s regular routine.
Maintenance is based on manufacturer specifications and OSHA standards. Planned inspections also include photos and records to provide a baseline for future repairs.
When you plan repairs, they happen on your schedule.
ISNetworld Certification
ISN and ISNetworld certifications aren’t specific to commercial doors. But they’re a sign that your business can trust the certified contractor to take safety seriously when working with you.
When your door contractor is listed on the ISNetworld database, you know you’re working with someone who has studied the best safety practices covering all steps of the work they’re doing. A contractor that prioritizes safe work will also consider the safety of your customers and employees.
RAVS Plus
Review and Verification Plus (RAVS Plus) is an ISN process that assesses a contractor’s overall health and safety from the inside out. This process requires a thorough review of a company’s training materials and practices.
This extra step also requires ISN to conduct an in-person inspection of a contractor’s operation. Only about 10% of ISN-certified contractors have successfully completed the RAVS Plus process.
Why an AAADM Certification Should Matter to Your Business
Time is money. It’s become a cliche, but for most companies, it’s true. When a non-certified repair person works on your automatic doors, you might save money upfront. But the lost time, and need for future repairs, can cost more in the long run.
Hiring certified door installers and technicians for your business saves time and money in several ways by:
Keeping Warranties and Insurance in Force
Hiring an ordinary repair person who isn’t familiar with your automatic door’s inner workings could void the door’s warranty. This could create higher repair costs later.
Also, if a malfunctioning door injured a customer or employee, your liability insurance may not pay the claim if an investigation revealed the door hadn’t been properly maintained by a certified technician.
Making Employees and Customers Safer
Automatic doors that behave erratically can injure people, and unauthorized repairs to automatic doors can create more problems than they fix. Ultimately, this scenario causes more downtime and more money spent on repairs.
Extending Your Automatic Door’s Life
Certified door technicians will also extend the life of your doors by using only professional and safe repair practices. The AAADA certification process requires technicians to understand the nuances of your door’s individual components.
This knowledge ensures certified personnel know how these components work both individually and together. Non-certified repairs might address a problem in a way that creates too much wear on other door components.
Making Your Business More Secure
People tend to judge automatic doors by their ability to open, letting customers enter during business hours. But when your business is closed, automatic doors have an equally important job: keeping people out.
Proper maintenance from a certified technician helps ensure doors remain secure from tampering.
Saving Everybody Time
Authorized repairs tend to be less frequent repairs. In fact, the SafedoorPM process, which we mentioned above, can cut back on almost all unplanned maintenance on your doors.
Planning your door’s maintenance — by scheduling it at a time that’s convenient for your customers and staff — reduces the chance that repairs will be needed at the worst possible times.
Automatic Doors Are Complex — Knowledge Matters
Everything works better when it’s properly maintained. That includes your business’s automatic doors. Taking control of your door’s maintenance will help them serve you and your customers better for longer.
We can help. RCI Doors™ has earned all the certifications discussed in this post. We know that knowledge about the inner workings of doors creates more value for our customers.
Contact us today. Whether you need an immediate repair, an installation, or an assessment of your door’s safety and performance, we’re authorized to do the job right.
Explore our Garage Door Repair in High Point services for more details
