Sep 24, 2009 12:00 PM

Rather than the rollers that guide the panels along a flimsy sheet metal track on their old doors, the door panels are equipped with heavy-duty retractable plungers that glide along the Impact-A-Track V-Groove track. When a forklift hits one of the impactable doors, the door releases from the track, eliminating costly panel damage. These doors are equipped with TKO’s PowerHouse Panel, which consists of a heavy-duty polycarbonate facing to stand up to the worst abuse. For security and to prevent unauthorized entry, the guide track is designed so the door cannot be pushed into the building.

The full-height track guide provides total protection against the most abusive impacts from top to bottom. When the old-style sheet metal tracks are hit just slightly, panels can be knocked out of alignment, opening up energy-robbing gaps.

After impact, to reset the door the crew simply pulls the plunger cable or door handles to bring the panels back into the door track. No tools are required and no damage is sustained.

Williams’ other complaint with his old doors was that they were so thin the heat would come through the door. In northern Georgia, the summer days can push the thermometer to the top. The door’s 1¾"-thick foam core panel with damage-resistant polymer interior facing provides much higher R-value and consistent temperature control than conventional steel doors.

The door panel construction is corrosion-resistant as well, remedying another big problem of the old doors. As a requirement in poultry processing facilities like Fieldale, one of the three shifts is devoted to sanitation and wash-down of the dock area. In the process of eating up microbes, the chemicals can also eat away metal panel doors, a condition the doors’ polymer panels resist.

The door has a tight perimeter weatherseal incorporating a double-loop side seal to prevent energy loss and air infiltration. Side seals are attached to the door—not the track or door jamb like standard sectional doors. This allows the seal to be out of harm’s way when the door is open, providing a more consistent and reliable seal when the door is closed.

“The seals on the old doors were constantly leaking,” said Williams. “We have checked the seal around the doors and found it keeps nice, even temperature on the dock.”

With the combination of high-volume production and a customer list of major accounts, according to Williams, “we wanted some of the best dock doors they had out there.”

“Maintenance is my number one thing. With all of the other equipment we have here, I don’t want my crew working on the doors all the time.”

In addition to the docks, Williams has an impactable door on the dry storage receiving dock and one on a high-traffic interior doorway.

He is planning on bringing up an eighth processing line soon. At the site of the current building he has the capacity to triple his space, which he figures will have to be done in the next two years.

“If we had eight days a week, I’d still need one more to keep up,” said Williams. “But not having door damage to worry about and losing out to the clock makes a big difference.”

--This article was contributed by Josh Brown, TKO Doors national sales manager. Please send inquiries to Michael Brittingham, TKO, e-mail Sales@4frontes.com, or phone 1-877-408-6788.