Total Door

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#KnowYourCode

We see plenty of confusion in the field about how standards and codes apply. Take a look at the door in this example, and you’ll see just what we mean. This application requires a fire rated glass. This picture shows a door with tempered glass and no latching device. This does not meet the intent of the code. Get acquainted with code UL 1784. Total Door Systems is the only integrated assembly that exceeds the testing and rating requirements for elevator, hoistway, and elevator lobby doors.

Part of the benefit of a Total Door System is that we take the guesswork out of how multiple codes and standards apply to your installation by ensuring they exceed existing life safety standards. We’re the experts, so that you don’t have to be.

If you have questions about the various standards and codes that affect openings and hardware, make sure that you are regularly checking our LinkedIn page or our website at totaldoor.com. We will be regularly posting helpful information and images to help you Know Your Code. 

Happy National Checklist Day – Here is Your Installation CheckList

October 30 is National Checklist Day (yes, really) u2013 in recognition of an aviation checklist established in 1935 following a tragic crash of a military aircraft caused by one missed step in takeoff protocol of the new, B-17 bomber.

While lives are not at stake, checklists matter for our industry too. We’ve provided our installation checklist u2013 or installation inspection form u2013 to help ensure Total Door Systems have been installed correctly, and to provide the best experience for your customer possible.

Installation Training: Ensuring Quality from the Start

Total Door Service Manager John Pierre knows a thing or two about maintaining the quality of the integrated door systems. It begins, he says, with ensuring that the installer has been trained on Total Door Systems and can install it correctly.

Pierre offered some thoughts about the benefits of getting installation training and certification in a recent conversation:

Q: Why does Total Door Systems emphasize the importance of its installation training?

JP: It’s all about how the parts of the door work with each other to operate. We require our installers to be certified onsite or at the factory so that they understand how everything works together in tandem. I was on a site a couple of weeks ago where the doors weren’t functioning. I was sent to inspect them and it turned out that they were installed incorrectly. I took them apart and re-hung the doors. They work great now and the customer is happy.

Q: How does the training prepare someone to serve the customer properly?

JP: The training we do is not bookwork. It’s hands-on training. We actually hang the door and look at the specs. We look at how it all interacts with each other. We do this with each application of door we have, and the installer leaves feeling comfortable, and knowing that they can handle anything in the field.

We have installation videos available on YouTube and on the Total Door website that show the process step-by-step if installers need a refresher or a visual guide while they are on site, as well. We want to make sure that we support the correct installation of the doors as thoroughly as possible.

Q: What does quality mean at Total Door?
JP: It means everything.

Marketing Landing Page

At Total Door Systems, we are used to being one of a kind. Providing easy-to-use online information that distributors can present through their own company website felt like a helpful addition.

In the coming weeks, Total Door will be unveiling a marketing website that distributors can incorporate into their website with a graphical link.

In recent months, Total Door had received multiple requests to provide website content for distributors. Ensuring that the information stayed current and provided the latest product updates and features was a potential problem.

The new site will be continuously updated and provide industry updates relevant to distributors and your customers.

If you have an idea about what content would be most useful to you, please let us know by clicking through the email address at the bottom of this page.

Installation Videos to Launch in March

Total Door Systems will launch new training and service resources in March with a series of videos that will detail the complete installation process. The videos will be available on YouTube and at TotalDoor.com, and are intended to give installers working in the field quick visual guidance. The videos also support Total Door’s in-field training program, which delivers installation training and mentorship for master installers at distributor locations across the nation.

Video Series Details Installation Process

Total Door Systems is expanding our training and service resources with a series of videos that detail every step involved in installing our integrated door systems, and making simple part replacements.

The video series, available in March, will launch on YouTube, and at TotalDoor.com to give installers working in the field quick visual guidance.

The video series comes as Total Door readies to launch its in-field training program. That program will deliver installation training to distributors’ locations across the nation.

New Material, Longer Life in Hanger Rod Update

A switch from stainless steel to a high-carbon spring steel has beefed up a critical part for Total Door Systems: the hanger rod.

The hanger rod needs to be strong enough to support the weight of the door – as much as 200 pounds – and flexible enough to endure the more than one million bends it will experience over a lifetime of openings.

It was a tall order, said Total Door Product Improvement, Design and Testing Engineer Gary Ray. But one that his team saw as an opportunity to leap frog improvements in the part’s performance.

During the rod’s rigorous testing period, Gary more than doubled the weight and stress applied to the part, opening, spinning and dropping the full weight of the door on the rod repeatedly. It never failed.

The new hanger rod has been in production since April. Gary and his team are already looking at how they can improve upon it in the near future.

“The hanger rod is one of the most critical moving components in the door; it has to work,” he said. “We’re always looking to improve all of our components – and we’re still testing revised designs of the hanger rod to continue improvements into the future,” he said.

Meet Jack Robbins: Business Development Manager

Jack Robbins has been a Total Door true believer for nearly 18 years.

Getting his start in 1999 at Engineering Specialty Company, a North Carolina-based distributor, Jack took on two large jobs that specified Total Door Systems. He was hooked.

“The simplicity of the system – the door came with all the components. It is very clean with no obstructions, and it’s a fast product to retrofit that provides unmatched security and fire safety,” he said.

Jack in December joined Total Door Systems as business development manager, helping sales representatives and distributors with his extensive knowledge of the product and how to grow awareness of its benefits across a broad spectrum of applications.

“There really hasn’t been an application that I haven’t tackled with a Total Door System,” Jack said. “I know the product and what it is capable of achieving like the back of my hand.”

Jack is an exciting addition to the team, said Total Door Systems CEO Patricia Yulkowski. The company has worked hard to provide consistent support to its sales and distribution teams, emphasizing open channels of communication. Putting additional team members in place who can help spur growth for everyone was a priority.

“We feel very fortunate to have found the perfect fit for that role in Jack,” Yulkowski said. “He understands the product, the integrity with which we operate, and the needs of our distribution teams.”

Jack agrees. His new role has been a long time in the making, he said.

“When I gave notice at my last job, my former boss looked at me and said, ‘We’ve always known your first love was Total Door.’ I had always said that one day I was going to work for Total Door,” Jack said.

“I want everyone to know that I am here for them and that I will be coming out and getting to know them personally to discover how I can assist them to grow their business.”

New Automated Quoting Tool to Deliver Big Results for Distributors, Sales Reps

Faster turnaround on quotations and a more efficient stream of data and production management is coming to Total Door’s distributor and sales rep portal with the introduction of an online “Configurator” tool, expected to go live towards the end of the first quarter of 2018.

The tool, a customized iteration of Configure One’s CPQ software, will allow any Total Door distributor with an Internet connection to design and quote a door by simply answering as few as a half-dozen questions. The Configurator will provide an accurate quote, as well as a product drawing. The tool allows for further customization, if desired, and automates the quote to production process, cutting red tape and increasing process efficiency and accuracy.

Total Door is offering a series of pre-configured options to help distributors and sales reps showcase the various options to a variety of potential customers.

“All you have to do is to go into the system, select the opening – pair, double egress, single, etc. – the fire rating, the size and the finish and you can get a quote right then,” said Jeanne Kitchen, Total Door Controller and Configurator project director. “You’ll be able to get a quote, which can be saved if they want to use it as a talking point.”

Sales representatives also will have a window into the quoting activity that’s happening in their territory to provide the best support possible, Jeanne said.

The Configurator is currently undergoing rigorous internal testing. Once launched, Total Door will offer a series of webinar training events to teach those new to the tool how to use it. The Configurator and the training will be tied to distributors existing login at TotalDoor.com.

“We’ll offer all of the additional assistance they need to get them comfortable with the tool upon launch,” Jeanne said. “This is a powerful tool and we want everyone to be able to experience its full range of benefits.”

Contact

Total Door Systems 6145 Delfield Dr, Waterford, Michigan 48329
Ph: (800) 852-6660 | Fax: (248) 623-6866 |customerrelations@totaldoor.com

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