Safety Check ALUMAX Hinge Inspection Projects completed pre-july 2012
Safehinge is the market leading supplier of safe door products to the UK s education and healthcare sectors. Every year, 30,000 children trap and injure their fingers in doors. To address this issue, in 2009 we launched ALUmax, the UK s first safety hinge to be integrated with the door and eliminate the risk of finger trapping to children. Furthermore, the robust design means that the finger guard lasts the lifetime of the door saving over 500 per door when compared to plastic finger guards. Safehinge now works with more than 65% of the UK s Local Authorities, as well as exporting internationally, and therefore our ALUmax product is very widely used and has made a positive contribution to safety in school environments for over 7 years. CONTEXT OF INSPECTION DOCUMENT In December 2015, a door using our integral finger guard - ALUmax - came loose and fell to the ground. Thankfully no one was injured, but our concern was that someone could have been. We take the safety and wellbeing of our customers and the children using buildings containing our products very seriously. The inspection conducted jointly by the school, LEA and ourselves concluded that the failure was caused by incorrect installation and not a product fault. Specifically, there are some incorrect installation methods (described later in this document) we have identified that, when applied, can lead to significantly increased stress on the ALUmax floor plate/l-bracket component at the bottom of the door, which in turn can lead to the component breaking in a very limited number of cases. Safehinge is a product manufacturer only. We do not carry out installation work and therefore correct installation is out of our direct control. However, given the potential risk, no matter how small, to our customers we have taken the decision to issue this safety notice to enable our customers to check the mechanical integrity of any ALUmax doors in their building. This document is designed to enable you to: 1. Identify whether you have ALUmax in your building and whether this safety alert is applicable 2. Understand the incorrect installation methods that we have identified as problematic 3. Complete a safety inspection, if required 4. Take corrective action, if required It is important to state this issue only affects projects supplied before July-2012 and therefore will only affect a very limited number of customers. If you identify any doors that you are concerned about, we are happy to discuss this in greater detail with you and provide replacement floor brackets (floor plates or L-brackets) for affected projects free of charge. 2
DO YOU HAVE ALUMAX? ALUmax is our integral finger guard product which eliminates the gap between a traditional door hinge and the door frame. It has a rounded aluminium profile, which prevents fingers being trapped in a closing door. ALUmax is practically invisible and can be easily missed on a day-to-day basis. Some photographs of ALUmax below will help you identify our product. ALU30 fitted on 44mm doors ALU60 fitted on 54mm doors 44mm 54mm 3
All pivot doors - whether Safehinge ALU or not - have a maximum op door frame. It is strongly recommend that measures are taken to pr Recommended stop angle: 100 (Maximum opening angle: 110 ) BACKGROUND OF SAFETY NOTICE In August 2011 we noted an issue where the joint detail between the boss on the L-bracket/floor plate and the base plate could fail when not installed correctly. We had reports from three seperate projects and carried out a root cause analysis and quality inspection. The analysis pointed toward an installation issue of the door opening angle not being restricted as per our technical and manufacturing guidelines (see right image). Unconstrained doors that are allowed to bind against the frame create extreme leverage and strain on the pivot components which in turn can lead to the weld detail in old components failing. These issues were originally believed to present themselves during construction or close to project completion, however the recent incident at a school in December 2015 changed this position. WARN force o lead to Door c but sho limiter As a hinge manufacturer, we are not in control of ensuring correct installation so we took the responsible step of strengthening the join detail in 2011 to be capable of withstanding even the extreme forces caused during misuse and incorrect installation. Unrestricted door opening angle In September 2011 we quarantined all our current stock and retrospectively added additional welds to the boss, increasing them from 3 to 8 spot welds. This was a short-term satisfactory fix. Failed pre-july 2012 L-bracket Pre-July 2012 bracket with 3-point weld 4
boss Rivet and weld detail plate New join detail introduced in 2012 Floor-plate cross-section with new detail By December 2011 we had re-designed and tested a new join detail for the L-bracket/floor plate. The new design has the boss riveted to the base plate, as well as four weld points (see left image). These new L-brackets/floor plates entered our supply chain in April 2012. There have been no reports of issues with the improved 8 spot weld, nor with the rivet and 4 point weld detail currently in use. ALUMAX TIMELINE Aug 2011 ALUmax L-bracket issue identified Oct-Dec 2011 Additional welds added to in-stock L-brackets Jan-Apr 2012 L-brackets redesigned with rivet & weld design Jan 2016 No reports of issues with new L-brackets Jan 2009 ALUmax Launched Sept 2011 All in-stock L-brackets quarantined Apr 2012 Redesigned L-brackets enter supply chain We feel it is prudent that all ALUmax doors on projects supplied before July 2012 are checked for mechanical integrity. 5
WAS YOUR ALUMAX INSTALLED BEFORE JULY 2012? Only L-brackets and floor plates used in projects completed prior to July 2012 could be affected. The user is advised to follow the safety checklist in this manual. IDENTIFY BRACKET MODEL AND SUPPLY DATE There are a couple of ways to identify whether your floor plate or L-bracket could be affected: Option 1: Check project completion date. All brackets fitted prior to July 2012 could be susceptible to fracture if incorrectly installed. Option 2: Check bracket for updated logo. Our branding changed in January 2013, therefore all L-brackets and floor plates carrying the new logo should be unaffected. If your bracket was fitted during or before July 2012, then you are advised to proceed to the safety checking procedure to identify any defects. OLD LOGO NEW LOGO Some old brackets can have no logo. 6
SAFETY CHECKLIST If you have identified that you have ALUmax doors in your building which were supplied before July 2012, we recommend carrying out the following safety inspection on all doors as a Opening precaution. Angle Limit STEP 1. ENSURE DOOR OPENING ANGLE IS RESTRICTED All pivot doors - whether Safehinge ALU or not - have a maximum opening angle beyond which they will bind on the door frame. It is strongly recommend that measures are taken to prevent binding from occurring. All doors - whether Safehinge ALUmax or not - have a maximum opening angle beyond which they will bind on the door frame. It is strongly recommended that measures are taken to prevent Recommended binding stop from angle: occurring. 100 The recommended stop angle is 100 (Maximum opening angle: (Maximum 110 ). opening This angle: is required, 110 ) irrespective of supply date. TIP Limiter stay can be used as alternative to door stop. Shared Details: ALU30 & ALU60 WARNING - Door binding on frame exerts extreme force on door, frame and ironmongery and may lead to damage/failure. WARNING - Door binding on frame Door closer with back check improves situation, exerts extreme force on door, frame and but should not be used in place of door stop or ironmongery and may lead to damage/ failure. limiter stay. Door closer with back check improves situation, but should not be used in place of door stop or limiter stay. 7
DOOR RESTRICTION OPTIONS The door restrictor prevents a door from opening too far and causing damage to the doorset and hinges. You must ensure that your doors have a door stop installed correctly. We have listed four common types of door stop below. Floor mounted door stop Wall mounted door stop Over head door restrictor (e.g. DORMA stops and holders 700/900) Cushion limiter stay installed into slide arm door closer (e.g. DORMA cam-action door closers TS91 & TS92) 8
STEP 2. PERFORM BOTTOM FIXING/WELD DETAIL MOVEMENT TEST 1. SUPPORT It is recommended at least two people conduct the testing - at least one person to hold the door whilst one attempts moving the base of the door. The door should be tested in an open position. 2. MOVE While the door is supported, pressure should be applied from the closing side of the door in toward the pivot. Pressure can be applied inwards either by foot or pulling outwards by hand. Test door in open position The bottom bearing is a thrust bearing and will allow 1-2mm movement when weight is taken off the bearing, so try not to lift the weight of the door during this test so you get a true reading of whether there might be weld issue. OR Push/pull the bottom of the door 3. INSPECT If the weld detail is fractured, there should be movement between the plate and the boss. Check for movement 9
STEP 3. ENSURE CORRECT UNDERCUT AND APPROPRIATE SIZED BEARING STEM IS USED HOW TO MEASURE THE UNDERCUT The undercut should be measured from the top of the steel bracket to the bottom of the door. If the gap is larger than 9mm then the wrong bearing size might be fitted. Our team at Safehinge will require a measurement from you if you believe the wrong bearing has been installed. Please record the actual gap size if larger than 9mm. Simplified CAD schematic - bottom of the door boss door bottom Undercut (1-9mm) floor plate (3 mm) L-bracket (4 mm) WHICH BEARING SIZE? The short stem bearing is supplied as standard. However, sometimes a long stem bearing is used depending on the undercut required. Long stem bearings are rare (less than 0.1%). 10
WHAT TO DO NEXT FREE OF CHARGE REPLACEMENT We will supply replacement parts free of charge to any customer who identifies that their doors are using the original weld detail floor plate or L-bracket and wishes to take the precautionary measure of replacing them. To request a replacement, please visit http://www.safehinge.com/safety-notice-jan16 and provide the following details: 1. Do you require replacement floor plates or L-brackets? 2. What is the quantity of 44mm and 54mm doors? 3. Do any pivots require long stem bearings? If so how many? 4. Details of project FURTHER INFORMATION We pride ourselves on the quality of our products and underpin that with outstanding customer service. Our door is always open and our dedicated customer service team is happy to help you with any questions, queries or concerns. T: 0141 244 0085 E: info@safehinge.com 11