What goes wrong
Commercial doors in offices, retail stores, warehouses and medical suites fail in a small set of ways. Cylinders shear or freeze, mortise bolts stick, and exit devices bind from dirt, damaged cams or misaligned latches. Panic bars can be dented or have loose pushrods, and electric strikes lose adjustment or stop receiving power. We inspect the cylinder, tailpiece and cam, check bolt travel and strike alignment, test the door closer and look for warped frames. In Aston Township we document what hardware is failing and explain which parts are repairable and which need replacement.
02
What the job involves
When a lockout or damaged panic bar affects business operations we treat priorities differently than a residential job. We bring replacement cylinders, mortise parts, replacement trim and common exit device components and work on-site, driving out from Havertown. While we work you can secure the area, limit access to staff only if customer safety is a concern, and pull any keys, access cards or wiring schematics for the door. If the door is part of a multi-door system tell us which doors share a master key or controller so we can plan the sequence of work.
03
Good to know
Commercial access control and electrified hardware have additional checks. We test power at the strike or mag lock, verify the keypad or reader has a reliable connection, and trace wiring when an electric latch retraction or release fails. For master key or rekey projects we take cylinder measurements, record existing pinning and note keyed-alike groups before we begin. If you have a system drawing, key schedule, or the original master keys, have them ready; in Aston Township we've rekeyed storefronts and updated keypad codes using what clients hand us.
04
Worth knowing
When we replace hardware we fit the door for a solid strike, longer throw deadbolts or reinforced faceplates when the door demands it, and make sure the latch engages cleanly with the strike rather than relying on shims. For panic hardware we check pushrod lengths, dogging mechanisms and arm geometry; for closers we inspect arm type and mounting, seals and fluid. We explain the visible follow-up items you should watch for (binding, spongy returns, intermittent electric releases), and we leave the door functioning and the work area clear so staff can resume normal work.
