Automatic Doors in Etobicoke

Not as a blanket rule. The requirement comes from the Ontario Building Code's barrier-free provisions, which apply when you build or renovate, and from the AODA's Design of Public Spaces standard, which covers certain new and redeveloped exterior paths and entrances. Existing buildings are not ordered to retrofit every door. In practice most of our operator work is triggered by a permit, a renovation, an accessibility complaint or a tenant requirement rather than by an inspector arriving unannounced — and where the code does apply, the entrance also has to meet clear-width and opening-force limits, not just open by itself.

Yes, and on an egress route it is a requirement rather than a nicety. Sliding doors on an exit route are built with break-out panels: push the leaf hard from inside and it swings out of its track to give a clear opening. Swing doors with a low-energy operator can simply be pushed open manually when the power is off — the operator declutches. What you should not assume is that a given door does this: break-out is a specified feature, and a slider bought without it stays shut. We confirm which behaviour an existing door has as part of an inspection.

Typically 4–6 weeks to produce the door once shop drawings are approved, then 1–2 weeks to schedule the job and install it — so around 5–8 weeks in total, depending on the size of the project. An automatic slider runs to the longer end because the operator, the framing and the glass all have to arrive together. A standard automatic door operator is a different matter entirely: those are stock items, so fitting one to a door that already hangs correctly is usually 2–3 days rather than weeks. Emergency repairs are a different clock again and are dispatched 24/7. On site, a single automatic entrance is usually installed in a day; a full package on a general contractor's build runs over several weeks.