Lag Time in Awareness

The chief reason that horizontal sliding-door systems aren't used in more applications, manufacturers say, is that design professionals are not aware of the blanket acceptance of them in fire and building codes.

"There's always an audible gasp," said Welch, from Won-Door. "I've had 100 design professionals in a room and there has not been the awareness that the publication of the IBC in 2000 said, with a uniform voice, that you can use a sliding door in any application regardless of occupancy. It's unheard of. But enforcement officials felt the technology was better. If it was just as good as a swinging door, there would be no reason to make a code change."

The International Building Code is clear on the subject. In Section 1008.1.2, the code states that "egress doors shall be side-hinged and swinging," but the sixth exception is this: "In other than Group H occupancies, horizontal sliding doors complying with Section 1008.1.3.3 are permitted in a means of egress."

Section 1008.1.3.3 of the International Building Code requires that the horizontal door systems:

• Shall be power operated and shall be capable of being operated manually in the event of a power failure;
• Shall be openable by a simple method from both sides without special knowledge or effort;
• The force required to operate the door shall not exceed 30 pounds…to set the door in motion and 15 pounds…to close the door or open it to the minimum required width;
• The door shall be openable with a force not to exceed 15 pounds… when a force of 250 pounds…is applied perpendicular to the door adjacent to the operating device;
• The door assembly shall comply with the applicable fire protection rating and, where rated, shall be self-closing or automatic closing by smoke detection, shall be installed in accordance with NFPA 80 and shall comply with Section 715;
• The door assembly shall have an integrated standby power supply;
• The door assembly power supply shall be electrically supervised;
• The door shall open to the minimum required width within 10 seconds after activation of the operating device.

As long as the horizontal sliding-door systems meet those performance standards, they are allowed.

The confusion arises because many design professionals refer to the provisions of the three regional building codes developed over the 1990's that allowed horizontal sliding door systems with restrictions, Welch said.

The first modifications appeared in the 1986 NFPA life safety code and appeared in print in the 1988 edition of the NFPA life safety code. "That was a kind of beachhead," Welch said. Then the revisions appeared in 1990 in the Building Officials and Code Administration's National Building Code, and in 1991 in the International Conference of Building Officials' Uniform Building Code and in the Southern Building Code Congress International's Standard Building Code. In all of those revisions, there were restrictions-limiting the use of the systems to elevator lobbies, in healthcare facilities, and in buildings with an occupancy load of 50 or less.

By 1996, the Building Officials and Code Administration lifted those restrictions. But it was only in 2000, when the three regional codes were combined in the International Building Code, that the restrictions were lifted uniformly.

The revisions are increasing in complexity but also opening up options for architects who wrestle with emergency egress and fire protection issues in even the largest occupancy structures. Spencer M. Johnson, AIA, principal at Cole + Russell Architects in Cincinnati, OH, recalled that when a fire-rated separation door was needed for two large openings in the expansion and renovation of the Cincinnati Convention Center recently, the initial move was to replace the existing overhead coiling doors with new overhead doors. The building code required that one of the doors be capable of being opened by convention attendees during an emergency, and the overhead doors in place could not be re-opened even by the staff of the facility; the vendor had to be called in to raise them back in place. The new overhead doors were capable of being opened by occupants, but changes to the structural steel design and the architecture were required to conceal the overhead coiling drum and support the coiling door weight.

"The final result was not as eloquent" as a horizontal sliding-door system, Johnson said. A horizontal sliding-door system was more expensive than the overhead coiling system, but after it was value-engineered out and savings were realized elsewhere on the project, Johnson said it was the first item he sought to have reinstated.

Anthony Flint is the Boston-based author of the book "This Land: The Battle Over Sprawl and the Future of America."

Won-Doorâ„¢ products are routinely specified in major design projects around the world. At Won-Doorâ„¢ we pride ourselves in making the most technologically advanced products in the building construction industry, but we recognize that our strength is found in the unique level of commitment and dedication of our people. We hope you will let us show you how the use of Won-Doorâ„¢ products can make a difference on your next project. www.wondoor.com