Although looks are important while designing interiors, the aspect of climate control as an important design consideration has been gaining ground especially in the Middle East where temperatures can vary widely depending on both the season and the time of day, says a spokesman for Besam.

Keeping this in mind, Swedish manufacturer of automatic doors Besam has designed automatic doors that are not only aesthetically appealing but also offer clients the climate control options they need with a level of quality and security they expect. “That’s why Besam doors are making life more comfortable and convenient at airports, hotels and healthcare facilities throughout the region and worldwide,” says the spokesman.
The technology behind Besam doors, which was developed back in 1962, has been recently applied at several airports in the region including the Abu Dhabi Airport, and the Marina Shopping Mall in Abu Dhabi, and the Metropolitan Palace, in Dubai, among other projects.
The origins of the concept can be traced back to four decades ago when Bertil Samuelsson realized that hospitals in southern Sweden could benefit from doors that opened and closed automatically. He designed an operator that could be fit to an existing swing door, and Besam was born.
Today, the company Samuelsson founded in Landskrona, Sweden, is a world-leading supplier of automatic door systems for commercial, healthcare and residential applications. Besam’s global clientele in 70 countries relies on its doors and service to make life just a little bit easier for its customers, patients and residents. In fact, an estimated 15 billion people pass through Besam doors each year, says the spokesman.
“We are an international company that has never forgotten the value of local know-how,” says Besam CEO Juan Vargues. “We pride ourselves on being familiar with varying world markets and having local knowledge in our relationships with our customers. It also puts us in a unique position to service large multinational companies that want to take advantage of the Besam network.”
Besam currently has distributors in nine Middle Eastern countries including: ETA Electromechanical and Technical Associates, Dubai, UAE; Universal Aluminium Company, Bahrain; BCS Business Communication, Egypt, Kiasakish Company, Tehran, Iran; Jordan Engineering Company, Amman, Jordan; Gulf Automatic Doors, Safat, Kuwait; Dantziugian Company, Beirut, Lebanon; Group 4 Securitas and Partners, Muscat, Oman; and ETA Electromechanical and Technical Associates, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Naturally, Besam’s product line has expanded a great deal since the early days. In addition to swing doors, the company’s production facilities in Sweden, Germany, England, Australia, China and the US combine to produce sliding doors, revolving doors and entrance gates to fit virtually any application. Annual sales exceed $300 million worldwide.
While the healthcare industry continues to be a top market segment for Besam products, the retail, transportation and light manufacturing sectors are also major customers. Nearly all Besam doors can be custom-manufactured to meet a specific need, be it high-security access, airtight closure or - as is often the case - in areas with widely-fluctuating temperatures, climate and airflow control.

Efficiency & savings
Climate control was a big issue for the Barcelona International Airport until Besam put its application knowledge to work to offer an attractive, efficient solution. High traffic in the passenger check-in area meant that the sliding doors were nearly always open year-round, making it difficult to control the interior temperature of the building and causing very draughty conditions for airport employees.
Besam technicians realised that replacing the sliding doors with revolving doors would have an immediate impact on climate control without compromising efficient traffic flow. Within weeks of the installation, the airport’s human resources department was reporting a significant decrease in absenteeism due to illness, and facilities management officials have been delighted with the energy savings as well, says the spokesman.
“Our business approach puts both product-development and the manufacturing process very close to our end-customer,” explains Lars Paulsson, Besam’s director of global marketing. “That gives us a great deal of flexibility and allows us to be very responsive to customer needs.”

More than just entrances
A recent example of a custom order involves a new addition under construction at the airport in Adelaide, Australia. The designers of the state-of-the-art multi-purpose terminal were charged with creating a building that could be used for both domestic and international flights. The challenge was to make the high-security areas necessary for processing foreign travellers easily available for use when heavy domestic airline traffic warranted it. Besam worked with the designers to come up with a practical, attractive solution that involves 40 automatic telescoping door systems. When activated, these doors will create a 200-m-long, three-metre-high operable wall that divides the terminal in two.
All Besam products and services are backed by over 40 years of engineering experience as well as a wealth of application expertise. The company prides itself on being able to help customers choose the right automatic door system for their specific setting or situation, all with consideration for local construction and security requirements, safety, operational needs and appearance.

One-stop shop
“Our commitment to customers doesn’t end with the sale and installation of their automatic doors. Besam’s worldwide service organisation is positioned to ensure both trouble-free operation and long product life. Service contracts, ranging from the most basic planned maintenance to fully comprehensive agreements that cover all labour and materials used during breakdowns, can be arranged. And of course all service agreements can be customised to fit a facility’s particular needs,” he adds.
“Besam’s international network of service teams and technicians is also uniquely positioned to service all automatic doors, regardless of the manufacturer. The phrase ‘any door, any model, any time, anywhere’ is regularly heard among members of Besam’s service organisation and it’s not an exaggeration,” the spokesman points out. “In recent years, the company has been pursuing and winning maintenance contracts over the companies that originally built and installed the equipment. This can mean a savings of both time and money by simplify facilities maintenance needs.
The Besam Group has been living up to its ambition of being a leading supplier of automatic door systems in the world.
As a global leader, and the only supplier of a complete product range, Besam continually takes the next step in developing the automatic door business.