Five Upgrade Priorities for Defence Facilities Reviewing Site Access
Defence facilities often face demanding and extreme conditions. From protecting classified assets to managing the flow of traffic from military vehicles and people, site access needs to perform without compromise, each and every time. If your building is currently being reviewed for its access strategy, here are five upgrade priorities to consider during planning.
1. Replace Slow or Ageing Doors with High Speed Models
Outdated doors can be one of the most common and overlooked vulnerabilities on a defence site. Slow roller shutters or obsolete sectional doors can cause traffic bottlenecks, create security risks and require frequent maintenance.
New high speed spiral doors, such as the models in EFAFLEX’s range, open and close at speeds of up to 5 metres per second, which reduces the window of opportunity for unauthorised access. They are also able to withstand high operational cycles, up to 500,000 per year without degrading in performance.
- Reduced open time at access points
- Lower risk of tailgating or forced entry
- Less maintenance downtime
2. Improve Thermal & Environmental Control
Many defence sites contain sensitive equipment, vehicles, aircraft or munitions that need stable environmental conditions. Standard doors often do little to protect against heat loss, condensation or pressure changes.
However, high performance fabric doors and insulated spiral doors are able to provide a strong thermal barrier. This means that facilities can keep consistent internal conditions, reduce energy costs and meet sustainability targets without losing speed or high security levels.
3. Integrate Access Control & Automation
A high speed door can be highly secure when the system controlling it also has tight security measures. Consider upgrading to industrial doors with integrated access control:
- ANPR (automatic number plate recognition)
- Proximity readers
- Interlock systems
- Remote monitoring
These upgrades allow security teams to have greater knowledge of who and what is entering or leaving the facility. EFAFLEX’s doors can be fully automated with a range of opening methods and control integration, so that access points become a cohesive security infrastructure not just operate in isolation.
4. Consider Blast & Impact Resistance
For high risk areas in a building such as armouries, vehicle marshalling yards or fuel stores, standard industrial doors are not strong enough. Doors in these areas need to be engineered to resist blast pressure, forced entry or accidental vehicle impact for essential additional protection.
When evaluating access points, categorise each door location with a risk level and then specify door performance requirements. Not every entrance needs the same spec of high speed door but the most at-risk entry points will require the highest rated products.
5. Build Planned Maintenance Into Your Strategy
An upgraded door system will be most reliable when a maintenance strategy is put in place. Defence facilities cannot afford unexpected failures at critical access points. Therefore, a proactive, scheduled maintenance programme, which is carried out by qualified engineers who know the equipment, will keep systems operating at their peak and ensure compliance with health and safety regulations. EFAFLEX provides full maintenance packages across the UK with rapid response support.
Are you ready to assess your current site access points? Whether you are planning a full infrastructure upgrade or are looking to address specific weaknesses, EFAFLEX has the expertise and door range to suit defence requirements. Our team is experienced in working with defence clients to specify, install and maintain high speed doors that meet operational and security needs. Get in touch with our expert team to share your project requirements.
