Winterize Your Loading Dock to Prevent Energy Loss
The harsh winters in NEPA can make keeping cold air out, and warm air in—a big challenge. Worn or damaged seals and dock shelters don’t help matters as improperly weatherized loading docks lead to a tremendous amount of energy loss. Now is the time to stop losing those energy dollars and make your docks a safer, more comfortable area for your workers and products. Let’s look at some key points.
Dock Seals and Shelters – There are several different types of seals and shelters depending on your loading dock criteria. But the primary function is the same; they help create a closure. Seals and shelters offer important protection that aids in energy conservation. They help to preserve internal temperatures and safeguard your products from outside weather and contaminants. Maintaining your seals is critical to saving energy dollars.
Brush Seals – When there is a gap around a dock leveler it provides a means for cold air to infiltrate your building. Whether at the back and/or sides of the leveler, minimize the gap with brush seals to help reduce air loss and contamination from outside elements.
Dock Leveler Seal – The Kelley Energy Guard® Dock leveler seal provides a superior perimeter seal that prevents energy loss and blocks out dirt, debris, and pests.
Check out the Kelley Dock Shelter brochure for more detail:
Exterior Doors – There are commercial door systems for virtually any application, but a quality door is critical when trying to save energy. Insulated sectional, rolling steel or high speed doors when sealed properly will generate cost savings that you will notice. When looking at insulated doors some use R-values to measure the insulating power of the doors. The greater the R-value, the greater the resistance, and so the better the thermal insulating properties of the object.
To conclude, there are many ways to improve efficiency to save your company money. Often overlooked, but a great place to focus on is the loading dock area. It’s vital to your bottom line to seal the gaps in and around the loading dock. It can save thousands of dollars in energy costs per year.
At Action Lift, we offer a full-range of dock equipment as well as, complete dock repair and scheduled maintenance. Our Dock and Door specialists are ready to help you save money. We repair and install commercial doors (high speed, rolling, and sectional doors of many types) dock levelers (mechanical, hydraulic, air-powered), dock seals and shelters for various applications, and vehicle restraint systems. Call us today for a FREE survey of your loading dock area. We will partner with you to take action to seal the gaps.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-value_(insulation)
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