Imagine waking up to this knowing that you won't be able to get your aircraft out of the hangar. This inferior "other brand" hydraulic 74' x 19' Florida hangar door literally fell off its hinges and had to be sent to the junk heap. It was replaced with a Schweiss hydraulic door.
HERE IS ANOTHER DOOR IN FLORIDA...
HINGES RIPPING OFF
THE DOOR HEADER
* NOT A SCHWEISS DOOR!
Imagine walking out to your hangar to take in an important business meeting or family vacation and your big 74’ door is twisted and lying on the ground. A Florida airport manager experienced this shocking revelation.
“It looked like the top hinges broke off starting with a structural failure at one corner which created a domino effect halfway across to the side of the building. There were several planes in the hangar at the time, but they thankfully weren't damaged. This calamity put the hangar out of operation for four months. We chopped up the door and threw it away. It wasn't good for anything else; it was just nothin' but a hunk of junk metal sitting there. It wasn't even an old door; it was installed in 2010. I think the company that built it is now out of business or operating under a different business name.”
- Tom Vaughan
Florida airport manager
This was a perfect case that emphasizes the need for hydraulic or bifold door buyers to do their homework on why some manufacturers doors and door components are superior to others. A “company, now out of business, ” sold and installed a 74’ x 19’ hydraulic door at Airglades Municipal Airport in Florida that went to the ground due to inferior hinges not strong enough to hold the door in place; and this was during normal weather conditions, no wind, no storm whatsoever! The entire door had to be sent to the scrap heap and was replaced with a Schweiss hydraulic door. A perfect scenario of why “cheap” doesn't save you money in the long run.
“I can tell you one thing, if we ever have to replace any other doors, it will be with a Schweiss door and not any other brand door; there is no doubt about it,” said Tom Vaughan, who manages the Airglades and LaBelle municipal airports near Clewiston and in LaBelle, Florida.
Getting a new Schweiss hydraulic door fixed this dilemma, but can you imagine, there are 69 more of these inferior doors at LaBelle and Airglades to worry about each day.
You might expect something like this to happen if a tornado, hurricane or high wind conditions ripped through the area, but exactly the opposite was the case - weather conditions were not a factor.
“I can tell you one thing, if we ever have to replace any other doors, it will be with a Schweiss door and not any other brand door; there is no doubt about it. We asked our local aviation engineer to look at the Schweiss door from his engineering standpoint. He took pictures and we gave him a brochure and he said he was going to take it back to his engineering firm to tell them if they have any future clients interested in putting up a door to direct them to Schweiss.”
- Tom Vaughan
Florida airport manager
“It looked like the top hinges broke off starting with a structural failure at one corner which created a domino effect halfway across to the side of the building. There were several planes in the hangar at the time, but they thankfully weren't damaged. This calamity put the hangar out of operation for four months,” said Vaughan.
Vaughan said that when his door fell he had heard prior to the incident that the door company had gone out of business. Looking online to see what other door designs there were, he ran across Schweiss Doors. They also had a local tenant, who upon returning from the SUN 'n FUN air show saw the Schweiss Doors display and described how well they were built.
“We chopped up the door and threw it away. It wasn't good for anything else; it was just nothin' but a hunk of junk metal sitting there. It wasn't even an old door; less than six years old, it was installed in 2010. I think the company that built it is now out of business or operating under a different business name. I wasn't even able to call the manufacturer to see if he would stand by his product,” said Vaughan.
The hangar now has a 74’ 3” x 19’ 2” custom-made Schweiss hydraulic door on it. The door is engineered for 175 mph windload with a 12-volt backup system and reinforced with a strong external truss and Schweiss' hydraulic steel frame with triple push tubes. The newly designed wraparound hinges can be lubricated from inside the building. It also has a hydraulic 2-speed valve that enables the door to slow down at the top and bottom cycle for smoother operation.
“Schweiss doors are overly built, the hinges are 10 times better and bigger than the chicken sh-- hinges on the other manufacturers door. They all have grease fittings where the “ other manufacturers ” doors don't have grease fittings. The Schweiss cylinders are about three times the size for the same size door.
“We asked our local aviation engineer to look at the Schweiss door from his engineering standpoint. He took pictures and we gave him a brochure and he said he was going to take it back to his engineering firm to tell them if they have any future clients interested in putting up a door to direct them to Schweiss. Our Schweiss hydraulic door arrived on time and in good condition. Schweiss made a promise to have it to us in three weeks, and they darn sure did. We were thinking it would be 60 to 90 days to get the door. I worked with the engineers at Schweiss Doors and they were very helpful with suggestions and gave us all the information we needed,” concluded Vaughan.
You know what they say about hindsight being 20/20?
It doesn't have to be that way if you just do your homework before deciding on whose door to buy!
The large Florida hangar had several aircraft inside when the door collapsed. Had a plane been leaving the hangar it could have resulted in a lost aircraft or even death.
NOT A SCHWEISS DOOR!
WILL YOURS BE NEXT?
Another door less than six years old being hauled off to the junkyard!
In addition to the loss of many thousands of dollars worth of useless door, additional expense was incurred to remove it and purchase a Schweiss replacement door. The less than six-year-old hangar was put out of commission for four months.
IMPORTANCE OF WARRANTY...
WHAT DOES IT REALLY MEAN TO THE END USER OF THE DOOR?
If the door company I rely on for warranty claims goes out of business. Now What?
If a company you depend on for your commercial door needs disappears, you could be
left with a lot of unanswered questions. What does this mean for my door? Who do I
turn to now for repairs? My door is a very important part of my shop or hangar -
will this unexpected situation hurt my real estate values?
You might be thinking: What good is a door if the brand name is now tarnished?
When your bifold and/or hydraulic door provider goes under, you're the one who
gets sold short. You're left with no service, no replacement parts and no one
to walk you through important service issues. Think about it: what if something
really goes wrong? A working bifold or hydraulic door is an absolute must for a
properly functioning commercial building; you must trust your door!
Do Your Homework... look into a door Company's reputation... longevity... and experience!
Really! When you're looking to purchase a hydraulic or bifold door, you should always look into a door company's reputation, longevity and experience. Without a good reputation and a solid history, what are you left with? Not a thing - and definitely no one to rely on! It's scary when you have no backup for such a large, important component of your building! Price is one thing and quality is important, of course - but no warranty? Now there's an awful thought! Imagine getting ready to fly and your hangar door just won't budge! You and your plane aren't going anywhere. Getting ready to move your farm equipment and your shop door just won't budge! You and your large farm equipment aren't going anywhere. You run to the phone for helpful customer service, only to find that the door company you rely on is no longer in business!
Looking for the Cheapest? When you're tempted by the cheapest option on the market think about it first - because you really do get what you pay for! Without available service, you're really in a tough spot. Those problems will keep multiplying. Without that warranty, you're left calling around to find a reputable repairman. It's highly likely that repair company will ask you for the name of the door manufacturer - and once they find out the door company is no longer in business, they might just run from the mess, leaving you back at square one! In today's lawsuit-abundant world, a decent repair company isn't going to run out and assume the liability when the slightest thing goes wrong! In the real world, when that original door manufacturer is nowhere to be found, the last person to touch that door could be liable for negligence - and any good repair center knows this! Here's the thing: you're not only buying the door, you're buying the odds that the company will stick around for the long haul, ready to service your moving door when you need it most!
Who do I Turn to for Help?
At Schweiss Doors, we are in it for the long haul. We've been around for more than 45 years and we're not going anywhere! We're available to service the heck out of your door and we'll always be here when you need us.
Just remember this: Sure, that door you rely on so much moves great today - but just knowing that, should something ever go wrong, Schweiss Doors will back you up - now that's real peace of mind! You shouldn't have to experience that lonely, scary feeling when your door company goes out of business - at Schweiss, we're always here for your commercial door warranty needs. ALWAYS!
Sometimes the topic of warranty seems trivial, but at Schweiss Doors, we know there's much more to a door sale than just the sale itself! When you purchase a hydraulic or bifold door from Schweiss, you're just beginning a lasting realtionship with our company. We provide ongoing service - and that's the
Schweiss Advantage!
Warranty is everything! Imagine calling a company only to find out nobody's home - the entire company was dissolved! "Sorry baby, you're on your own!" No one wants to hear those words! At Schweiss, we know warranty is huge! Warranty is everything! A warranty without the original company behind it means absolutely nothing.
Warranty is worth it, it's everything, and you need a door company that will carry you through any service issue that may come up! At Schweiss Doors, we're here to help! We have a proven track record of excellent warranty servicing and fantastic customer care.
Most everything starts from something...
The Evolution of the One-Piece Door
Here's proof that one piece doors started many years ago. Take a guess, what vintage? . . . Was this built in the 1940s or 50s?
Older than Old . . .
Bifold doors keep getting better thanks to Schweiss Doors. With proven Lift Straps and Auto Latches the door travels up faster and smoother. Say no to cables! Schweiss Patented Lifts Straps are the latest and greatest improvements to bifold doors that have been around for years . . .
Bifold Doors just keep getting Better!
Imagine the brainchild behind the door pictured here. It was at one time an inventive piece of work using two 55-gallon concrete-filled barrel counterweights to help lift it. Somebody undoubtedly got tired of the back-breaking task of lifting it every time they wanted to use it. It was great thinking and enhanced mechanization for its time! Got to give the guy credit for his ingenuity.
It's that type of creative ingenuity that pushes progress. Gone are the times of farmers working the fields with horses, gone are the times where industry used belts and pulleys for power, gone are the times of small prop-driven aircraft, they've been replaced by large tractors, robotics, and jet engines. What it really comes down to is when people really need a better way to do something, they figure out a way to do it and Schweiss Doors figured it out many years ago taking a one piece door to a new proven level of excellence. "Necessity is the Mother of Invention."
Other manufacturers claim to have invented the "original" one-piece door; some started in business, went out of business, and now claim to be the original. Realistically, look at the door above, it may have been built way before anyone was even in business. It is a perfect example of a unique one piece door.
Over the years the hydraulic door gene pool has seen many versions of versions, variations and configurations, some good and some not so good. What others came up with in the past may have been a good idea at the time, but now their "original" design may fall into the category of an archaic and outdated door, especially if they continue to skimp with inferior parts and materials following the path of trying to get by cheap, doing nothing to improve the original design or to better satisfy their customers.
Schweiss Doors, on the other hand, has proven to be a leader in the hydraulic world - that's the power behind Schweiss Doors and this is where Schweiss shines - our wheels are always turning and we go the extra mile using only the best components and materials available.
It's obvious our potential customers can see the difference. Here's a letter from a contractor telling us about his client who was in the market for a quality door for his new building:
"One thing is for sure, my customer is sold on Schweiss doors. I took him to one of our buildings that has another brand door and then we went to the building with the Schweiss door. His words were: This Schweiss company knows how to build a door. I wouldn't take one of those other doors if it were free after I have seen the Schweiss Door."
- Keith
Schweiss has proven to be, and continues to be, a leading manufacturer of hydraulic doors. New developments (that no other manufacturers have even thought of) have improved efficiency and lowered costs on the incomparable Schweiss hydraulic door. Schweiss hydraulic doors are now the world's foremost solution for industrial, residential, military, gantry crane buildings, commercial, mining industry, shipyard buildings, biomass installations, paint booth solutions, designer doors, hangars, boat houses and a whole lot more.
Schweiss Doors advanced engineering techniques and customer feedback have resulted in a newly accelerated level of excellence. Just when you thought something couldn't get any better, the Schweiss Door brainpower design team does its homework and once again gives the hydraulic door a boost by adding spherical bearings, beefed up hinges and our newly designed compact, but powerful Red Power pump. Not only do these features add to the life of the door, make it easier to install, but operationally it's much improved. Schweiss Doors keeps making doors better every day.
Best of all, it doesn't take two men and a boy to lift or lower our Schweiss hydraulic door like it did for this old 55-gallon barrel door. Now it's all done by a push of a button. How Easy! . . . Now you could even call Schweiss Doors "The Daddy of Evolution."
"Look for quality, look for price, you'll buy Schweiss"
