How to Design a Stylish and Functional Aluminium Shop Front

How to Design a Stylish and Functional Aluminium Shop Front

Smart aluminium shop fronts from BDC Aluminium give you the best of both worlds when it comes to building a commercial façade. They combine style and functionality, making no compromises on important factors like performance and durability.

In today’s competitive retail landscape, a shop front does more than protect an entrance; it reflects a brand’s identity, attracts customers, and facilitates smooth, efficient operations.

Smart Door Planning for Foot Traffic

When planning what the perfect shop front looks like for certain customers or projects, the front door is probably more important than you think. The right door configuration can influence customer experience and the operational efficiency of the business within.

The choice you make will play a role in the customer volume and the type of business drawn in. As such, the choice between single, double, and sliding doors is one you should weigh up and decide based on what you want to prioritise.

There’s plenty of design flexibility, allowing us to cater to the needs of your clients or customers. Smart systems support swing, hinged and automatic doors.  They also provide a maximum sash width of 1150mm and a maximum sash height of 2500mm, so you know they can handle large openings.

Having such flexible configurations allows you to choose the door type best-suited to your foot traffic volume and accessibility requirements. For example, if you’re looking for hands-free access, our automatic doors are for you. For heavy inbound traffic, the sliding door’s smooth functionality and large openings may suit you best.

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Maximising Display Potential

Our aluminium shop front system accommodates both double and triple-glazed units, offering enhanced design flexibility while maximising display potential.

The larger glazed areas we offer increase natural light, create inviting retail facades, and allow product displays to be visible from outside, which can be important for certain customers who wish to draw in as many passersby as possible.

We boast a wide palette of finishes and colours for your aluminium shop front. Smart offers hundreds of high-quality standard and non-standard colours and finishes to fit almost any requirement. With a wide selection of colours available, our frames can be tailored to reflect brand identity.

As they’re powder-coated, durability will never be an issue. The colour is baked on, providing a lasting finish that won’t peel off or fade, and comes with a 25-year colour guarantee for that added peace of mind.

Security & Durability

Our system meets all necessary security standards, including LPS 1175 Level 2, BS EN 1627 Level 3. They also feature grade 6 locking mechanisms, with locking bolts withstanding side loads of 10 kN.

They feature a sash weight capacity of 80 kg and a robust frame depth of 100 mm, to enable durable, high-traffic use. Aluminium’s strength, added to the engineered locking system and hardware, provides peace of mind to retail spaces.  This is especially important for high-use entrances.

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BDC Aluminium: Commercial Solutions

The Smart Wall Shop Front by BDC Aluminium and Smart is your one-stop solution for retail and commercial facades: visual appeal, accessibility, performance, robust security and durability, all in one system.

Its customisation and design flexibility options mean it can be tailored to any retail brand or layout requirements.

If you’d like to work with BDC on your next project, why not apply for a trade account? Get in touch with our experts today to see how we can help you help your customers.

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Protecting Assets: Essential Security Checks for Commercial Properties During Holiday Closures
10 days ago News

Protecting Assets: Essential Security Checks for Commercial Properties During Holiday Closures

Commercial properties undoubtedly face increased security risks during closures over the holiday season. Buildings are unoccupied for extended periods of time, which unfortunately do present opportunities for theft, vandalism and unauthorised access. As such, it’s important to ensure preventative measures have been put in place. Aluminium doors are a critical first line of defence for commercial properties, offering strength and high resistance to attempted forced entries. 5 Essential Security Checks for Your Property 1. Inspect External Doors and Access Points Before your Christmas shutdown (and routinely throughout the year), you should be checking your doors. Check for any signs of wear, damage or misalignment that could cause any sort of compromise to the building's security. 2. Test Locking Systems and Hardware Ensure that your multi-point locks, cylinders, and any access control hardware like handles or knobs are functioning as they should. Any components that aren’t up to scratch should be replaced with a matter of urgency. 3. Review Frames, Hinges, and Fixings Look over your door’s frames and hinges to assess their structural integrity. Your aluminium systems should be firmly secured, with no loose fixings or gaps that intruders would look to exploit. 4. Check Glazing and Visibility Inspect your doors' glazing units for any sort of damage and ensure your safety, or that laminated glass is in place where required. Consider how visibility into the property is managed and if any high-value assets or stock are in view, an upgrade may be worthwhile. 5. Confirm Perimeter and Access Control Measures You should review any additional security features you have installed. Shutters, alarms, CCTV and lighting fixtures around the property should be checked before shutting down for Christmas. Why Choose BDC as a Commercial Partner? If you’re looking for a commercial supplier that’s trusted in the industry and boasts a proven track record of delivering impressive projects on different scales, look no further than BDC Aluminium. Beyond our impressive product portfolio and flexible aluminium systems, we appreciate how those working in the commercial field value a reliable supply chain and a host for all their aluminium needs. That’s where we really stand out. If you’re looking to upgrade your doors with BDC Aluminium this winter, there’s no better time to start than the present. Get in touch with one of our experts to discover how we could help your property.

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