Warping doors are definitely a thing of the past

A beautiful, secure exterior door is the icing on the cake for any facade. Harinck knows that like no other. The Belgian market leader is the reference for durable, safe and high-quality front doors, entrance doors and exterior doors in plastic and aluminum. 

"We manufacture and supply a complete range of FRAGER door panels for the joinery industry. From timelessly classic to modern and always groundbreaking," says general manager Franck De Munster. "A recent innovation is Magnetude®: a patented magnetic front door system that offers numerous advantages over classic sash overlay door panels."

Harinck's range includes more than 400 door panels, which are manufactured entirely in-house. "Roughly speaking, our panels can be divided into recessed panels and wing-covering systems," De Munster explains. "Because of their aesthetic quality, wing-covering systems are very popular with architects as well as end users. With the classic systems, however - where the door panels are glued to the door leaf - problems such as warping and clamping lurk. Our R&D department has solved this with a unique technique in which the door panels are attached via a magnetic principle: Magnetude®. Thanks to this technique, dilation is a thing of the past. When heated, sec the outer panel of the door expands. The door leaf, with its hinges and lock, remains completely stable. Even when the outer plate heats up to 90°C, the door leaf can be opened and closed without any problems! A revolution for plastic and aluminum doors, which also brings several additional benefits."

Because the dilation problem is efficiently overcome, imposing door sizes become possible, for example, De Munster said. "We produce doors 3 meters high and 1.50 meters wide every day, which offers architects new (aesthetic) possibilities. Especially in combination with the endless designs and color finishes."

In practice, Magnetude® has proven to save considerable time during door production. "With a classic sash overlay door, the lip of the sash profile must first be milled away and the sash rubbed and degreased before a primer can be applied to the sash and outer panel," De Munster knows. "And the glue side of the wing plate must also be degreased before gluing. After positioning and pressing both parts, the door system must dry for at least 12 hours before it can be transported to construction. With Magnetude®, on the other hand, no degreasers, abrasives, two-component adhesive, clamping laths or router are required. This saves a significant amount of time."

In addition to excellent thermal insulation, Magnetude® provides ample room for acoustic insulation. As a result, airborne noise from outside is no longer an issue. "The interlayer also provides opportunities for functional LED lighting," says De Munster. "For example, to discretely illuminate the cylinder, door pull, letterbox or recessed door pull. If desired, these functions can also be added at a later stage."

In fact, all parts of the door panel are easily interchangeable. "When a new look is desired or in case of damage to the glass or panels, there is no need to install a new door. Moreover, because the parts are not glued together, we are perfectly in line with the idea of circular construction: at the end of their service life, all parts can easily be separated and recycled separately."

Magnetude® is applicable to all FRAGER wing-covered door panels. Harinck is currently busy developing a Bauhaus series, based on the famous school of architecture. "Within this series, craftsmanship, technology, functionality and aesthetics go hand in hand excellently," De Munster emphasizes. "The series will therefore appeal to many architects. A characteristic of the Bauhaus series is that the form follows the functions. The result is a minimalist design, with an emphasis on ease of use and efficiency. Following the functional LED lighting, door handles for left- and right-handed use are an excellent example of this."

Magnetude®'s unique features make no compromise in security. "The burglary resistance of a Magnetude® door is equivalent to a standard door panel," De Munster emphasizes. "If one manages to remove the exterior panel at all, one is confronted with the classic door panel that is fixed with the glazing bar in the glass rebate. This will certainly discourage unauthorized persons!"

Magnetude® was introduced to the market about 2 years ago. Industrial processors were convinced of the system from the start, De Munster says. "But there was also skepticism. So we invited some processors to test the doors. And with success. For example, in turnkey projects, Magnetude® has more than proven its added value. Indeed, in these projects, the filler panel with the magnets can be installed as a provisional panel. The decorative outer panel is not installed until completion, making damage between installation and completion a thing of the past.