DOCK & DOOR TEC
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  • Equipment
    • Dock Locks (Truck Restraints) >
      • Impact
      • Non-Impact
      • Non-Conventional
      • Wheel Chock Systems
      • Pit Hooks
    • Fans & In-Plant Equipment >
      • HVLS Fans
      • HVHS Fans
      • Trailer l Dock Fans
      • Lifts, Various
      • Vertical Reciprocating Conveyor
      • Mezzanine Platform
    • Industrial / Commercial Doors >
      • High Speed Fabric Doors
      • Security High Speed
      • Rubber Doors
      • Fire Door
      • Rolling Steel
      • Impactable Dock Doors
      • Cooler / Freezer
      • Fabric Roll-Up
      • Impact / Traffic / Bump
      • Overhead / Sectional Doors
      • Operators / Activation
      • Air Curtains / Screen & Bug Doors
      • Strip Doors
      • Door Entrapment Protection
      • Door Protection
      • Overhead Door Upgrades
    • Loading Dock Levelers & Lifts >
      • Hydraulic Levelers
      • Air Powered Levelers
      • Mechanical Levelers
      • Edge of Dock Levelers
      • Cold Storage Telescoping Lip / Vertical Storing & Rail Car Levelers
      • Dock Lifts
      • Dockboards, Dockplates & Dock Ramps
      • Bumpers
    • Loading Dock Seals & Shelters >
      • Dock Seal & L-Pad Seal
      • Soft-Sided & Rigid Shelters
      • Specialty Enclosures
      • Under-Leveler Dock Seal
      • Rain Stops l Canopies
    • OEM & Aftermarket Parts
    • Safety / Energy / Security / Employee Comfort >
      • Energy Saving / Employee Comfort
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Blog

Extend the Life of Your Existing Equipment

8/3/2022

 
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While the worker and raw good shortages have negatively affected the “lead times” on new equipment like industrial doors and loading dock equipment, supply challenges have also affected the "lead time" on the parts and pieces that make up the equipment. Constant changes have affected which parts are readily available and which ones are not. Recently there was a shortage of 1” and 1.25” diameter solid door shafts, while 6 months-ago door springs were hard to find. We have seen issues with some hydraulic and electrical components but not others.

Whether it is the smallest part or the largest component on a piece of equipment, they’re all needed to make it work. Part failure can create a snowball effect resulting in additional parts being damaged ultimately leading to the entire piece of equipment unfixable. The two key components to keeping your equipment working properly are:
  1. Ensure the equipment was properly applied, it is being used and maintained correctly. (If you are not intimately familiar with specifics and your usage, ask your service/equipment partner to help you with this.)
  2. Establish proper training for your employees who can perform regular checks and it will provide due diligence for safety training. This not only showcases the concern for the health of your employees, but the health of your equipment as well. In addition, shutting down a poorly working piece of equipment may prevent catastrophic failure, and empowers your employee to recognize when and why this is important.

Now is the time to double down on proactive maintenance, as this can prevent issues before they happen. Schedule a service visit today. 
SCHEDULE VISIT

Proper Capital Expenditure Planning

8/3/2022

 
Are you experiencing supply chain challenges when it comes to the maintenance of your facility? We know these challenges are not going away soon.

The way you conduct business will need to change for you to thrive. As a result, we're sharing five strategies you can implement to avoid delays created by supply chain challenges. Below is the first strategy you can implement.
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A foundational understanding of when to replace equipment is built by having a clear accounting of:
  1. Current equipment conditions
  2. Equipment quality vs. the application and cycle usage
  3. Performance in every environment to determine the life expectancy
    ​
Ideally, a maintenance program is in place that includes a detailed inspection with proper asset configuration. This includes date of manufacture and the needed details to build this foundation of information. “Lead time increases” vary greatly in the dock and door industry, so knowing what to expect is important. For example, many (not all) dock leveler manufacturers are facing “lead times” nearing 1-year, consequently ordering equipment will need to be done much sooner than in the past. In addition, the employee, raw goods, manufacturing shortages, and shipping delays are likely and should be expected. Factoring in the uncertainties listed above for equipment purchases/updates is a great practice.

Typically, you don’t have failure before your new equipment arrives, and if it arrives early that’s OK. If you’re still skeptical about ordering early, ask yourself these questions:
  1. What is the cost to your organization caused by down equipment?
  2. How does down equipment affect your relationship with your client’s or partners?

Compare the amounts from the questions above with the cost of buying an asset a few months earlier and consider the total in costs when you don’t take “lead times” into account.

No one likes surprises, why create one more?

P.S. See more tips like this on our LinkedIn page.
FOLLOW US HERE

5 Ways to Avoid Service Calls

3/11/2022

 
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Whether it’s malfunction or misalignment, many service calls we receive at Dock and Door Tec can be avoided. We’ve gathered 5 of our top service call culprits that cause operator and equipment damage as well as affect the entire facility’s efficiencies and safety.
1. Overhead Doors
2. Debris
3. Obstructions
4. Bumpers
5. Slide Locks
 
While some of these reminders may seem minor, they can trigger other, more significant issues that lead to inoperability. Often, the reason a dock door does not operate properly is a simple one that can be addressed in-house, saving you time and money.
Do you want to avoid a service call? Ready to save time and money at your facility?
​
Our team put together 5 short videos that show you what to look for at your facility to stay at peak performance.
 
Watch the video series to see what you can do to keep your dock working properly and safely.
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P.S. Get more tips like this on our LinkedIn page.
FOLLOW US HERE

Are You Headed For A Break-Up? Say Goodbye To High-Maintenance Dock & Door Springs!

1/25/2022

 
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Servicing a door spring brings a multitude of safety risks to you and your team. Combine this with an out of adjustment spring and employee risk is multiplied.
 
Common hazards include:
  • Spring Adjustments – Over the life of the spring door, spring adjustments are necessary to keep the doors operable. When your doors are used at a high frequency and springs are not adjusted properly, your employees face operational dangers every day.  
  • Springs used for Counter-balance - Mechanical equipment, such as a door using springs as counter-balance, is a danger when binding, added weight or resistance, worn parts or damage prevents a door from operating properly.

    With every cycle (defined as one open/close) the employee must take physical action twice. Any deficiency in the operation will require greater effort by the employee, which could result in pinched fingers and injured shoulders, neck, back or worse.

    Even doors with powered operators have a higher risk when spring counterbalanced. The motors on operators often will overcome an out of adjustment door spring. Some can even lift a door with a broken spring. As the motor cannot hold that much weight, the door could crash causing catastrophic results. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3BxH4VGwBg​
Why break-up with dock and door springs and opt for a springless counter-balance system?
A springless counter-balance system for doors will increase your workplace safety, protect your employees and your bottom line.
 
The benefits:
•          designed to install on new or existing docks & doors
•          designed to work in all applications
•          reduced annual maintenance and repair costs
•          reduced injury and Workmans Comp risk
•          reduced downtime
 
Why are springless counter-balance systems not commonplace?
 
The answer: Knowledge and upfront cost.
The education around industrial doors is dominated by the door company manufacturers. They focus on high volume sales of door sections and panels, their primary product. Cost is the focal point on most new construction projects. The upfront cost of springs is less than springless options. However, the cost of ownership is much less with springless doors and is a wise investment, providing you with operable, safe door systems.
SPRINGLESS SOLUTIONS

5 Evil Myths about Dock and Door Springs

12/6/2021

 
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There are many types of springs: torsion springs, extension springs and compression springs to name a few. While they are a nifty invention and help make mechanical devices work, move or reset, they cause more problems than they solve. And unfortunately, they are brought up most often when they break or come out of adjustment.
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New springs won’t need adjustment for at least a year.

Springs are a wear-and-tear item and will slowly lose strength and need to be adjusted. When adjustments should happen depends on many variables. Our data shows that over 15% of new torsion or extension springs on sectional doors or mechanical dock levelers need to be adjusted within one-year.
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I can’t predict when a spring will break.

The exact day and time cannot be predicted but all springs have a life cycle. For torsion springs on sectional, rolling steel doors, and rolling fire doors there is a spring rating referred to as cycle count. You can better predict when a spring will break by knowing the cycle count rating of the spring and keeping track of how many cycles have occurred on your door. Most sectional doors can be upgraded to a higher cycle spring, at a minimal cost of replacing broken springs.
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​Doors with electric openers (operators) don’t need properly working springs.

Openers are designed to only lift the engineered weight of the door, with properly working springs. Reduce the lifting force of a spring by having it out of adjustment or if it were to break and continue to open with an opener, expect to damage the opener and create a huge safety hazard for employees!
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​Springs are impervious to temperature.

​​​Our volume of calls for broken springs goes up dramatically when temperatures warm up above freezing then drop below freezing overnight. The larger the jump in temperature the more broken springs we see.
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​Bigger springs can be installed on my dock or door.

This is a BIG no if you expect the dock or door to work properly. Too strong or too light of a spring won’t cut it. While cycle count can be increased it has to be the correct torque or force of spring for the door or dock. On dock levelers it is critical to match the spring exactly when replacing. Some levelers are designed to have up to four different size springs! On doors the IPPT (inch pounds per turn) must match.
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Explore Springless Systems

You can eliminate springs with Dock & Door Tec’s Springless Systems for doors and hydraulic conversions for dock levelers.
EXPLORE SPRING SOLUTIONS
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Dock & Door Tec
Serving Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota & South Dakota
  • Home
  • About
    • Accreditation
    • Community
    • Our Story
    • Our Team
    • Case Studies
    • Testimonials
    • The Dock & Door Tec Difference
  • Career Opportunities
    • Dispatcher / Scheduler
    • Administrative Assistant / Receptionist
    • Service Technician
    • Account Manager
  • Services
    • Springless Solutions
    • Enlarged Openings / Concrete Work
    • Facility & Equipment Analysis
    • Fire Door Drop Testing
    • Loading Dock Equipment Installation
    • Loading Dock Repair
    • Proactive Maintenance
    • Service Areas
    • Request Service
  • Equipment
    • Dock Locks (Truck Restraints) >
      • Impact
      • Non-Impact
      • Non-Conventional
      • Wheel Chock Systems
      • Pit Hooks
    • Fans & In-Plant Equipment >
      • HVLS Fans
      • HVHS Fans
      • Trailer l Dock Fans
      • Lifts, Various
      • Vertical Reciprocating Conveyor
      • Mezzanine Platform
    • Industrial / Commercial Doors >
      • High Speed Fabric Doors
      • Security High Speed
      • Rubber Doors
      • Fire Door
      • Rolling Steel
      • Impactable Dock Doors
      • Cooler / Freezer
      • Fabric Roll-Up
      • Impact / Traffic / Bump
      • Overhead / Sectional Doors
      • Operators / Activation
      • Air Curtains / Screen & Bug Doors
      • Strip Doors
      • Door Entrapment Protection
      • Door Protection
      • Overhead Door Upgrades
    • Loading Dock Levelers & Lifts >
      • Hydraulic Levelers
      • Air Powered Levelers
      • Mechanical Levelers
      • Edge of Dock Levelers
      • Cold Storage Telescoping Lip / Vertical Storing & Rail Car Levelers
      • Dock Lifts
      • Dockboards, Dockplates & Dock Ramps
      • Bumpers
    • Loading Dock Seals & Shelters >
      • Dock Seal & L-Pad Seal
      • Soft-Sided & Rigid Shelters
      • Specialty Enclosures
      • Under-Leveler Dock Seal
      • Rain Stops l Canopies
    • OEM & Aftermarket Parts
    • Safety / Energy / Security / Employee Comfort >
      • Energy Saving / Employee Comfort
      • Security Solutions
      • Safety Straps / Barrier Systems
      • Dock Lights & Communication Lights
      • Trailer Stands
    • Yeti Snow Removal
  • Markets
    • Food & Dairy
    • School Districts
    • General Contractors & Architects
  • Blog
  • Contact