Door closers, floor springs and automatics at PFI Great Western District Hospital

The 55,000m² Great Western District General Hospital, replaced the existing Princess Margaret Hospital in Swindon and had a construction contract value of approximately £100 million. DORMA supplied a large number of door closers and floor springs through IRM Bristol ironmongers. Also specified were six of DORMA’s ED 200 automatic operators.

Matt Caldecott, Director at IRM Bristol, comments: “Because PFI focuses on the whole life cost of a project, using the same tried and trusted products throughout a building makes sense. “DORMA’s market-leading reputation in door hardware has led here to four products being chosen and used repeatedly, which makes both the specification process and ongoing maintenance consistent and financially prudent.”

Prominent Features

No fewer than 600 of DORMA’s TS 83 and 450 TS 73 rack and pinion door closers were installed on doors throughout the hospital. These feature a variable closing force and a “thinking” backcheck, which offers variable resistance according to the speed with which the door is opened. Being non-handed and with an adjustable closing speed and latching action, both the TS73 and TS 83 can be fitted to virtually any door, on either the pull side or the push side. Both also hold successful independent testing to BS EN 1154, and are CERTIFIRE approved for fire doors – ITT 120. DORMA’s TS 73 EMF door closers feature 280 times throughout the hospital. These electro-magnetic closers can hold a door open at any angle between 75-180 degrees. If there is a fire alarm or a power cut, the hold-open is released and the door becomes self-closing once more.

Finally, 140 of DORMA’s BTS EMB 80 floor springs, suitable for fire doors, were used. As with all of DORMA’s floor springs, these were completely concealed into the transom and provide a flush installation that will perfectly complement the design of any door. This particular design is an electro-magnetic hold-open and is CERTIFIRE approved for fire doors – ITT 60.

Graham Hulland, Product Marketing Manager for DORMA Door Controls comments: “We were able to overcome a significant problem due to the construction of the floors in this project, which had meant that the use of floorsprings (which are necessary where doors have to be double action and held open) was not possible. “By mounting a BTS 80 EMB floorspring, which has integral magnetic hold open ‘upside down’ in the transom, we achieved the desired performance and functions.”

The ED 200 is an all-purpose automatic swing door system, which is ideal for internal and external applications alike. Its compact nature makes it perfect for both new build and retrofitting to existing doors. In addition, and of considerable importance in a hospital environment, the ED 200 is an exceptionally quiet operator due to a solenoid valve in the hold-open setting.

The hospital, which is positioned in parkland style landscaping, is set over six floors, and was a pathfinder project for the implementation of The Natural Step, an environmental initiative to work towards sustainable development. The main design and build contractors were Carillion Plc.