Automatic sliding and swing doors are no longer a luxury reserved for large modern buildings: they now represent a strategic solution for any commercial or industrial complex aiming to optimize operations, safety, and accessibility. However, choosing the right solution requires a deep understanding of specific needs and contextual factors. This article guides both industry professionals and business decision-makers through the informed selection process, explaining how to transform an ordinary door into a strategic element of operational efficiency.​

Strategic Reasons to Install Automatic Doors

Operational Efficiency and Continuous Flow

In crowded commercial environments—like shopping malls, airports, or hospitals—physical movement through doors creates a silent bottleneck. Manual doors take time, cause interruptions, and lead to queues during peak traffic. Automatic doors eliminate this friction, enabling a continuous flow of people and goods. In industrial settings where forklifts or pallets are moved, an automatic door significantly reduces transit times and the risk of accidents in tight spaces.​

For logistics facilities, the gain translates into concrete figures:

fewer seconds per transit × thousands of daily transits = savings of hours of work per week, with a direct impact on productivity.​

Accessibility and Regulatory Compliance

Italian law (D.M. 236/1989) and European accessibility standards require public and commercial buildings to facilitate access for people with reduced mobility. Automatic doors are not just an ethical choice but a legal necessity for compliance. They also add perceived value for customers: an accessible environment is an inclusive one, enhancing company reputation.​

Safety and Access Control

Public parking lots, company facilities, shopping centers—these contexts involve hundreds of openings and closings per day. Gates operate almost continuously during operating hours. Only robust systems designed for frequent cycles ensure reliability. This aspect is non-negotiable: power, durability, and extreme-use design are essential.​

Brand Image Enhancement

An automatic door conveys professionalism, innovation, and attention to detail. In commercial settings like showrooms, modern offices, or premium retail chains, automation contributes to a positive customer experience aligned with brand identity.​

Specific Benefits for Commercial and Industrial Contexts

Retail and Hospitality

Customer Flow and Experience: In a retail store, a glass sliding automatic door creates a silent, welcoming invitation. Customers don’t need to search for where to push—the passage is immediate. This is crucial during sales or holidays when flow peaks. Automation also maintains internal temperature control: the door opens only when needed, reducing thermal dispersion and heating/cooling costs.​

Recommended Solution: Automatic sliding doors with infrared proximity sensors. For high-traffic entrances, double swing automatic systems or synchronized multi-panel sliders.​

Shopping Malls and Public Facilities

Safety and Order: Automatic doors manage massive people flow. When integrated with access control, they handle reverse flows (e.g., emergency exits).​

Recommended Solution: Bidirectional automatic sliding systems, often combined with security turnstiles or occupancy counters.​

Healthcare Facilities

Hygiene and Safety: In hospitals, clinics, and healthcare structures, avoiding manual contact with handles is key to reducing pathogen transmission. Touchless infrared sensor automatic doors provide a crucial hygienic barrier.​

Recommended Solution: Infrared sensor automatic sliding doors, often integrated with differential pressure systems for sterile areas.​

Industrial and Logistics Environments

Goods Handling and Efficiency: In warehouses, production plants, and logistics areas, swing automatic doors are preferable to sliding ones. They allow passage of forklifts, pallets, and heavy equipment without damage risk. External motion sensors detect approaching vehicles and open preemptively, avoiding impacts and delays.​

Recommended Solution: Robust motor swing automatic doors with extended motion sensors and remote control options for forklift operators.​

Restricted Areas and Executive Offices

Controlled Access: For authorized personnel-only automatic doors, integration with magnetic badges, keypads, or biometrics is essential.​

Recommended Solution: Sliding or swing automatic doors with badge readers and/or biometric recognition. In high-security environments, multi-technology combinations (badge + fingerprint).​

Installer Guide: Choosing the Right Solution

A certified installer doesn’t just sell a door: they design a solution. Here are the key evaluation factors.

1. Traffic Analysis and Flow Type

Essential question: How many people/vehicles pass daily, and when?

• Light traffic (hundreds/day): Simple infrared sensor, standard motor, low maintenance.
• Medium traffic (thousands): Upgraded motor, wide-opening sensor, wear protection.
• Heavy traffic (tens of thousands, 24/7): Industrial motor, predictive sensors, planned preventive maintenance, possible redundancies.

This determines motor choice, component quality, and maintenance contracts.​

2. Passage Type

Sliding doors ideal for:

• public high pedestrian flow,
• no lateral space,
• aesthetic priorities.

Swing doors necessary for:

• vehicle passages (forklifts, pallets, cars),
• high structural resistance,
• sufficient swing depth,
• fire safety requirements.​

3. Environmental and Physical Conditions

• Temperature: Cold environments (refrigerators) need specialized motors and resistant materials.
• Humidity: Damp/outdoor areas require anti-corrosion and electrical protection.
• Available space: Wall width, structure height, obstacles (pillars, pipes).
• Type of Leaf/Frame: Is the door existing, or does it need to be designed from scratch?

4. Access Control Requirements

This is where the installer faces the most strategic decision: which accessories to integrate?

5. Integration with Existing Systems

The installer must always ask:

• Does an access control system already exist? (If yes, the automatic door must integrate with the existing system.)
• Is transit logging required?
• Is connection to a centralized security or alarm system needed?
• Are remote commands or mobile app controls planned?

Integration increases the solution’s value and customer satisfaction.

Accessories: How to Recommend the Right Combination

Sensore di movimento (infrarossi)

Where: Public environments, commercial accesses, non-restricted areas.
Advantages: Maximum simplicity, access for all, low maintenance.
Limits: No access control.
Ideal Contexts: Shops, public hospitals, shopping centers, main entrances.

Numeric Keypad

Where: Areas reserved for internal staff, but not ultra-high security.
Advantages: Simple, economical, no complex infrastructure.
Limits: Codes can be easily shared or discovered; hard to track who opened it.
Ideal Contexts: Offices, commercial backrooms, secondary industrial accesses, common areas managed by small teams.

Note for Installers: Warn the customer that the numeric keypad requires periodic code changes and a security policy (e.g., do not share the code, change password upon staff turnover).

Magnetic Badge / RFID

Where: Restricted areas with tracking needs.
Advantages: Automatically tracks who enters and when; easy to revoke (just delete the badge from the system).
Limits: Badge can be stolen or lost; database maintenance required.
Ideal Contexts: Company buildings, industrial plants, storage areas, laboratories.

Note for Installers: Highlight the value of tracking for security audits and regulatory compliance.

Fingerprint Detector

Where: High-security environments where staff tracking is essential.
Advantages: Impossible to forge; unique person identification; precise logging.
Limits: Higher cost; requires initial registration for each user; slightly slower process.
Ideal Contexts: Specialized laboratories, asset custody areas, executive offices with limited access, sensitive medical areas.

Facial Biometric Detector

Where: Large structures, high-speed access, need for contactless identification.
Advantages: Maximum speed; no contact; remote identification.
Limits: High costs; possible false positives in low-light environments; privacy waiver required.
Ideal Contexts: Main entrances of large companies, healthcare facilities, airports, security centers, government buildings.

Motion Sensor (for Anticipated Opening)

Where: Industrial environments with vehicle traffic (forklifts, cars).
Advantages: Opens the door in advance, before the vehicle arrives; maximum efficiency; avoids collisions.
Limits: Requires correct positioning; possible false positives from wind or animals.
Ideal Contexts: Warehouses, loading/unloading zones, industrial corridors, logistics platforms.

Strategic Combinations for Specific Contexts

Context: Retail Store

• Main entrance: Motion sensor (opening for all)
• Backroom: Numeric keypad (staff access)
• Maximum simplicity, low cost.

Context: Company Office

• Main entrance: Magnetic badge + motion sensor (access control + convenience for clients)
• Executive areas: Fingerprint + badge (double security level)
• Conference area: Motion sensor (automatic opening during meetings)

Context: Industrial Plant

• Staff entrance: Badge + external motion sensor (efficiency + control)
• Loading/unloading zone: Anticipated external motion sensor + remote control for forklift operators (maximum operability)
• Restricted area/valuables warehouse: Biometric + badge (maximum security)

Context: Hospital/Clinic

• Public entrance: Motion sensor (accessibility)
• Operating room/sterile environment: Motion sensor with differential pressure system (for hygiene)
• Administrative area: Badge + motion sensor (access control)
• Executive access: Facial biometric + badge (full tracking)

Maintenance and Durability Considerations

A savvy installer knows that the automatic door doesn’t end with installation. They must inform the customer about key factors:

• Heavy traffic requires maintenance every 6 months or annually.
• Harsh environments (extreme cold, humidity, dust) accelerate door wear.
• Sensors must be cleaned periodically to maintain responsiveness.
• Keeping oil/grease in motors reduces friction and extends system life.
• Scheduling periodic reviews prevents sudden failures and costly downtime.

Armed with this knowledge, a qualified professional can recommend the ideal solution for your context, proposing a periodic maintenance contract if needed.

VDS Automazioni Solutions: Excellence in Every Context

VDS Automazioni offers complete door automation solutions, specifically designed for the Italian and European markets.

Speed Plus and Gemini Advance: Automatic Sliding Doors

For medium-to-high traffic commercial environments, the SPEED PLUS and GEMINI ADVANCE motors are the ideal choice. Both solutions combine robust construction, quiet operation, and easy integration with access control systems. The GEMINI ADVANCE series, in particular, is designed for critical environments where service continuity is non-negotiable: dual power supply, redundant sensors, and intelligent diagnostics that alert before impending failures.

Ideal for shops, shopping centers, hospitals, and public structures where continuous flow and reliability are priorities.

Vento: Automation for Swing Doors

The VENTO line is the specialized solution for swing doors, designed for industrial and logistics environments. Robust motor, impact protection, and compatibility with external motion sensors for anticipated opening. VENTO integrates seamlessly with access control systems and allows remote control via remote or app.

Perfect for warehouses, logistics platforms, production plants, and areas with daily heavy vehicle and goods movement.

Conclusions

Choosing an automatic door is not a superficial technical decision: it’s a strategic one that impacts operations, security, accessibility, and company image. For commercial and industrial decision-makers, it’s an investment in efficiency and regulatory compliance. For installers, it’s the opportunity to understand the customer’s context and propose the ideal solution for their needs.

Whether it’s a small shop, a large hospital, or a logistics plant, the right combination of automation and accessories turns a simple door into a strategic element of mindful operations.

With solutions like SPEED PLUS, GEMINI ADVANCE, and VENTO, VDS Automazioni provides the technology and reliability needed for every context, supporting installers and customers in making the right choice.