Hospitality Insights has noted that the past couple years have presented hotels with a chance to reset, rethink and reinvent what hospitality spaces can look like and do for their guests. While this opportunity is exciting, it tasks specifiers and designers with added challenges. How can a hotel be accessible, safe, efficient and luxurious all at once?
Balancing all these concerns (and more) can seem near impossible. One way to open the door to new possibilities in hospitality spaces is with doors themselves. By departing from traditional norms and turning to new advanced types of interior sliding barn doors, hotels can solve these common concerns while also creating luxury experiences for guests.
From Inside the Suite to out in the Hallway
Commercial sliding barn doors can save up to 30 square feet of space when compared to a traditional swing door. They can instantly enlarge a suite when installed in tight areas, such as a bathroom door inside a suite. With acoustic seals that offer Noise Isolation Class (NIC) values up to 39 and the ability to meet the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements for ease of use and opening width, hotel barn doors can make any stay safe, accessible and peaceful.
Some specialty sliding barn doors, however, can do more than save space. For instance, offerings like FireSlide™, are fire-rated for up to 45 minutes and meet UL 10B standards to satisfy dwelling and sleeping unit fire codes.
Spa Rooms
Hospitality expert, Mariana Palmeiro, explains that 2020 saw a rise in health-conscious travelers. In response, many hotels have focused on developing wellness-focused environments like spa rooms. Interior sliding barn doors not only offer noise reduction for added tranquility but also customizable glass construction that preserves privacy while still allowing daylight to soothe the room.
Fitness Centers
Echoing the trend in wellness environments, fitness centers present an opportunity to incorporate luxury and accessibility to a space’s design. Commercial interior sliding doors add space, reduce noise and increase visual communication. With options for automation, guests will never have to worry about having a free hand to open a door.
Bathrooms
Sliding hotel barn doors with automation can also increase safety and accessibility for hospitality bathrooms. A Penn State study found that door handles can host millions of bacteria. Commercial sliding door systems come with several automation options for a hands-free operation. With brushless motor and worm gear integration, these doors open and close quietly preserving a hospitality space’s peaceful and luxurious ambiance.
Conference Rooms
As hospitality spaces rethink what they can offer, many hotels are looking to non-room revenue. Commercial sliding barn door systems can elevate event spaces and conference rooms with noise reduction and space saving designs. Oversized sliding barn doors, for example, can be up to seven feet wide or 15 feet wide per pair. This solution can easily slide open along the wall to enlarge two areas and support free-flowing movement, and then slide shut when smaller spaces are desirable for more collaborative work. Additionally, OfficeSlide™ doors can feature markerboard surfaces to help guests brainstorm together.
High Traffic Areas
All these benefits are equally applicable to high-traffic areas where the flexibility of added openings is desired. The Washington Post notes that, much like in 2020, more travelers hit the road in 2021. This means many car-bound adventure seekers will arrive with more baggage that requires more space in doorways and hallways. Commercial sliding door systems can accommodate these needs without taking up the space of traditional swing doors, so many facilities are choosing to augment their egress openings with sliding doors to enhance movement in and out of spaces.
These sliding doors also feature thick-gauge perimeter frames that not only look sleek and modern but also provide added protection from baggage and luggage carts, meaning less maintenance and repair over the life of the door system. Further, these perimeters can be finished in a variety of ways for a higher-end look that can complement a hospitality space’s interior.
Ready to Reinvent Hospitality Spaces?
Interior commercial sliding barn door systems can offer a luxurious solution to some of the common issues hotels face as they rethink their position in today’s world. With a focus on space saving design, safety and improved accessibility, our timely products can open the door to the future of hospitality spaces.
