Gate Automation Maintenance – Cheltenham – Tewkesbury – Stroud – Gloucestershire

As the owner of an automated gate, you are technically the owner of a machine, which just like your car requires routine maintenance.

The gate should be checked over by a qualified installer every six months as a minimum.

Finding an Installer

Always seek out a trained installer who has undergone the specialist training required to understand the protocol required to ensure a safe and compliant automated gate installation.

Once the gate has been installed (it must be CE marked to demonstrate that it legally complies with the EU Machinery Directive.

Be aware that just because a gate is CE marked, it is not necessarily safe.

The installer should provide a handover pack that will include:
• Location of control cabinet keys and manual release keys
• Details of how to put the gate into manual operation
• Details of key contacts
• A maintenance log book
In addition to this you should also be given a comprehensive briefing on how to use the gate, witness a demonstration on how to place the gate in manual operation and be provided with details of the weekly checks that need to be carried out to ensure the gate continues to operate correctly and safely

Safety recommendations

Before an automated gate is installed at your home, a full risk assessment should be undertaken by the installer, to identify all the potential risks associated with the gate.

The installer should then put in place measures to eliminate or substantially reduce the likelihood of an automated gate accident occurring.

All automated gates should be installed with at least two different types of safety devices / features to protect gate users from the risk of injury or worse, as a result of becoming trapped by the gate.

JP Security recommends the use of photocells (or light curtains/ laser scanners) and pressure edges on all gates that are automated.

However, the person who takes responsibility for installing these devices must possess the appropriate knowledge to understand where the devices should be sited to mitigate or eliminate the risk.

The installer must also have a clear understanding of how to select the correct pressure edges to ensure that they are capable of effectively stopping and reversing the gate when an object / person is detected.