Our passion for designing and manufacturing quality architectural doors for high-end residential and commercial markets recently connected us with a developer working on a brand-new urban design hotel.
The architectural vision for the upcoming hotel called for simplified design esthetics to connect with the existing build-up area. The interior was just as subdued, with narrower color and material palette.
The designer was keen to conceal many of the door openings around public areas of the hotel: lobby, offices, and business center. Additionally, the hotel concept called for a floor with a set of modern hotel suites with two interior doors in each unit. Quickly, our design discussions centered on Dorsis Fortius filo muro flush with the wall doors.
Commercial market projects always see much higher foot traffic than any house, so durability is critical. We discussed the finishes on these doors with the design team - and we settled on HPL laminates. HPL stands for High-Pressure Laminate - and it's an engineered decorative furniture surface that provides high wear resistance, a perfect fit for frequently used doors. Laminates have made a ton of progress in recent years and today there's a broad selection of laminates with some getting close to natural wood veneers in their appearance. We are particular to laminates from Egger, an Austria-based manufacturer. Their selection of wood veneer-like laminates now spans over 270 different wood species so our discussions with the project's design team took some time.
Noise transmission is a particular concern in hotel construction so for this market the developers and owners look for doors with high Sound Transmission Class (STC) ratings to prevent hallway noise from bothering guests inside — this is critical for suite entry doors. We were, however, tasked with designing and manufacturing doors inside the suite itself and for that task, the choice was our Dorsis Fortius 52 doors, with flush-to-the-wall 2" thick solid core door panels.
Door hardware was particularly easy with modern design black door handles used across the entire hotel. Locks on frameless doors are unique, however. Dorsis Fortius comes standard with our Dorsis magnetic door lock and a recessed magnetic striker. The effect is that with the door closed, there is no visible hardware, just the shadow gap around the perimeter of the door - and that was precisely what the design team was after.
As you can see, there are a few things specific to the commercial construction market and even more so to the hospitality industry. But it's always a privilege to work with some of the most talented architects and designers all across the world.
