Bespoke door system for Nissan

The arrival of battery manufacturers to the British market such as Britishvolt, with its huge battery plant being built at Blyth, Northumberland, illustrates the level of change underway led by Nissan, at nearby Sunderland, where the manufacture of electric cars and as a consequence batteries started some 10 years ago. 

As Nick Hart, managing director, Hart Doors, Newcastle upon Tyne, explains: “We were asked to work with the design team at the initial design stages of the battery facility to manufacture a bespoke door system that would integrate with Nissan’s own systems. There are now some 100 Hart doors now in the battery part of the plant.

“We developed a unique door capable of giving 60-minute fire resistance and also be capable of completing up to 400,000 open/close cycles a year. Further, the doors met strict air leakage criteria and resistance to sudden air-pressure increases.

“The doors also interfaced with third-party equipment such as conveyor belt controls and fire alarms. Each had an LCD display control panel that provided a quick and easy diagnosis of what each door was doing at any point in time.

“Quite clearly this was a complex challenge for a new door system that had to perform in a demanding manufacturing environment and importantly comply with British, European and American standards,” says Mr Hart.

“The oven doors were by far the most sophisticated with each requiring a self-supporting fire rated frame. Every door required two curtains, one that provided 60 minute fire resistance while the other one allowed the door to comply with the air leakage rates on the ovens.

“An additional benefit of the twin curtain design was the increased thermal performance of the door system as a result of the cavity created between the two door skins.”

Hart also supplied Cleanroom doors to control the environment which was an essential part of the manufacturing process where environmental control was down to the smallest detail to ensure zero contamination.

Where fire protection was essential Hart fitted 60 minute fire screens at entry and exits points enabling them to close under a fire condition but also comply with the requirements of the Clean Room standard as well as being assessed against releasing fine particles in static and moving conditions.

For more information, visit www.hartdoors.com