Security shutters and roller doors

Security shutters and roller doors close off openings with a solid steel barrier. The curtain rolls up into a compact box by day and locks down at night, which suits shops, warehouses and industrial units. ArxBridge supplies and installs high performance shutter systems across the UK.

• Solid steel curtainRolls into a compact box
• Manual or poweredOperation to suit the size
• Rated optionsTested shutter systems
• UK wideSurvey, supply and installation

Security shutters and roller doors explained

A security shutter is a curtain of interlocking steel laths that runs in guides at each side of the opening. Raised, the curtain coils onto a barrel inside a head box above the opening. Lowered, the laths lock together into a continuous barrier that resists lifting, cutting and prising.

The lath profile sets the character of the shutter. Solid laths give a complete visual barrier and the highest resistance; perforated or punched laths let light and air through while keeping the opening closed, which suits shopfronts that must show stock overnight. Insulated laths add thermal and acoustic performance for industrial doors.

Operation follows size. Small shutters wind up by hand with a strap or crank; larger ones use tubular or outboard motors with push button, key switch or remote control. Powered shutters can tie into the alarm and the building management system, so the building arms as the shutters come down.

Picking the rating for security shutters and roller doors

Shutters are specified by lath type and by test rating. Match both to the opening: a shutter is often the largest moving part of the security line, so it deserves the same care as the doors.

Fire performance is a separate question from security. Shutters on a fire compartment boundary need their own fire rating, and a security shutter without one must not be assumed to hold back fire. The fire ratings guide explains the E and EI classifications.

Specifier note. The guides are the weak point attackers test first. Specify guides with the same rating as the curtain, fixed into sound structure, or the shutter can be prised out of its tracks.

The build behind security shutters and roller doors

The curtain is roll formed from galvanised steel, with each lath profiled to interlock with its neighbours. The interlock is what gives the lowered curtain its strength: the laths cannot be separated without cutting, and the curtain acts as one plate across the opening. Heavier gauges and deeper profiles raise the resistance.

The guides are steel channels fixed to the structure at each jamb. They retain the curtain edges and carry the locking: shoot bolts or the motor brake hold the curtain down, and the guides stop it being lifted or spread. The head box encloses the barrel and the coiled curtain, and it is sized for the curtain weight and the opening height.

Powder coating finishes the steel in the project colour and protects it in exposed positions. For coastal or chemical environments the specification steps up the coating system, which the site conditions decide.

Security shutters and roller doors with combined ratings

Shutters and grilles are alternatives for the same openings, and the choice is honest rather than automatic. Retractable security grilles keep visibility and ventilation when closed; shutters give a solid barrier with higher resistance. Some openings get both: a grille for trading hours and a shutter for the night.

Where the shutter guards a door that is also a fire escape, the escape function must survive the shutter. Personnel doors with fire and security doors beside the shuttered opening keep the escape route independent of the shutter position. Security gates handle the vehicle openings on the same site, so shutters and gates are specified as one perimeter. For the full building envelope, the Security range adds rated doors, windows and grilles to the shuttered openings.

Sites that use security shutters and roller doors

High-value retail uses shutters on shopfronts, rear service doors and stockrooms. Utilities and energy sites use them on substations, depots and plant buildings where the openings are large and the sites are unmanned.

Warehouses and distribution centres use high speed roller doors on loading bays and solid shutters on pedestrian and dock doors. Schools, health centres and public buildings use shutters on vulnerable ground floor openings out of hours.

Cost and lead time factors for security shutters and roller doors

Opening size dominates: the curtain weight, barrel, motor and guides all grow with the span and height. The lath type steps the price: solid, perforated and insulated laths each cost differently, and tested rated systems sit above them all. Powered operation adds the motor, controls and commissioning.

Site works add up. The head box needs structure above the opening, the guides need sound jambs, and power is needed at each motor. Out of hours working in trading or occupied buildings affects the programme, as does any builders work to form the openings. A schedule of openings with sizes, lath types and operation is the basis for a quotation.

How to specify your security shutters and roller doors

1. List every opening. Shopfronts, doors, hatches and loading bays, with sizes.
2. Choose the lath. Solid, perforated or insulated, to suit visibility and thermal needs.
3. Set the rating. Standard or tested to LPS 1175 where the opening is on the rated line.
4. Choose the operation. Manual or powered, with the control type for each shutter.
5. Check the structure. Confirm support for the head box, guides and motor loads.
6. Request a firm quotation. Supply the opening schedule and drawings for an accurate proposal.

Frequently asked questions