Architects, designers and end-users alike agree that all-glass doors are fantastic. Glass doors allow for clear views and natural light, and they help showcase the very best in modern design. And when treated properly, glass doors provide for good sound control and noise reduction — but they also present many unique challenges.
Nowhere to Hide
An immediate challenge presented by glass doors is that they are clear. All hardware is 100% visible, so anything associated with the door has to be well installed and well thought out to preserve the aesthetics of the door and the decor of the space. The transparency of glass doors was a big driver in developing the ASSA ABLOY Glass Solutions, and particularly the new Glass Panic Device.
The ASSA ABLOY Glass Panic Device is a sleek, elegant, "L" shaped system which mounts on a glass door, and serves as a panic or exit device. The mechanics of the device are discretely housed within the tube, out of view. As the horizontal bar is pushed, the internal mechanism pulls down the latch and allows the door to release. The push region of the device features a nice, "push" engraving, which is color filled, adding to the aesthetics and tactile experience of the system.
Available off the shelf in three brushed or polished, stainless steel finishes, ASSA ABLOY also offers extremely durable, custom-colored, powder-coat finishing for the Glass Panic Device.
Flexibility vs Security
Surprisingly, glass panel doors flex much more than expected. Glass feels very rigid, but if you push on glass, it can flex much more than wood or metal doors. This flexibility of glass creates a unique challenge.
If a glass door is flexed in the middle, it shortens the overall length of the door. If there's too much flex in the door, the latch is effectively removed from the strike at the top, allowing a locked door to be opened. For this reason, a glass door and its exit device must be sized correctly and installed properly with the ability to be adjusted at the installation site, to ensure the proper level of latch and strike engagement.
Easy Installation and Adjustment
With ASSA ABLOY Glass Solutions, when a glass door arrives on the job site, the panic device has been pre-installed, and the door system is ready to be hung and adjusted for a proper fit. Each door must be adjusted specifically to the opening because the gap on the top of the door can be different from job site to job site, or even from opening to opening. For a proper installation, there must be some vertical and horizontal adjustment to get everything to line up exactly as needed.
By making use of a specialized, patent-pending bushing on the bottom portion of the exit device where it anchors into the door, an appropriate and easy-to-adjust level of fine-tuning is possible. Because the ASSA ABLOY Glass Panic Device mounts to the door through two unique pins, an installer can easily remove the device and make further adjustments if necessary. The ASSA ABLOY system is much faster and easier to install and adjust than competing systems, often requiring just a single technician for the entire process.
For more information on the Glass Panic device and the complete family of ASSA ABLOY Glass Solutions, please visit: ASSA ABLOY Glass Panic Devices