A recently introduced operator equipment for roll-up and sectional overhead doors has generated keen interest in Saudi industrial circles, its Saudi supplier says.

The Ovitor OY door operator, made in Finland and already well known in Europe, has been introduced to Saudi business establishments by Automatic Door Systems (ADS) of KM Al Nejaidi Corporation for Electrical Doors.

The Ovitor OY door operators marketed in the Kingdom by ADS come in three series - the KVR 5, the TVR 5 and TVR 8 - along with electrical controls.

"Within the three to four months that we have marketed this product we have managed to sell a lot of units to industries," said Al Nejaidi Corporation's sales and technical manager Munif Bin Kuwer. "We have received enquiries from top Saudi manufacturers and we expect many more orders."

ADS also markets loading dock systems from Kelley Company & Kelley Atlantic and from Nomafa industrial door systems which also use Ovitor OY operators for their high-speed doors. The company fabricates sliding and swing gates for industrial establishments and markets heavy duty sliding and swing gate operators while also offering maintenance to all its supplied materials.

According to details supplied by ADS, Ovitor OY's KVR 5 series is designed for heavy-duty sectional overhead doors up to 400 kg and a height of 5 m. The series includes models with a rapid release clutch, a manual hand crank, or a chain hoist for emergency use.

The KVR 5 being lightweight (12 kg) and narrow (100 mm), it is very easy to install directly on the 1-inch industry standard door shaft. It gives a torque of max 100 Nm by output speeds 20, 30 or 60 rpm (50/60 Hz) and has also an option for electronic overload monitoring and torque limiting when using the revolution speed control feature that is integrated in Ovitor's door control type EU2.

The TVR 5 series of hollow shaft door operators consists of modular components enabling customers to choose all features required for the local market. IT has up to six mechanical, easily adjustable rotary type limit switches. Due to standard IEC adaptor flanges a wide variety of different electric motors are available from 0.2 to 1.1 kW.

The series has an optional rapid release clutch for manual operation, adjustable slipping overload clutch and a variety of different gear ratios from a self-sustaining 45:1 to very fast 36:4. When using a self-sustaining worm gear there is no need for a brake in the drive unit.

The TVRF 5 with a 0.55 kW motor is suitable for sectional doors up to 600 kg and a height of 7 m. This multipurpose drive unit is also used in many other applications such as fast moving rolling doors and folding doors.

The TVR 8 series of door operators is designed for roller shutters and rapid rolling fabric doors. The hollow shaft can have a diameter up to 40 mm and gear ratios can vary from 82:1 to. 66:4. Like the TVR 5 series, the TVR 8 has options for rapid release clutch and overload slipping clutch.

Different electric motors from 0.55kW 900 rpm to 1.5 kW 2800 rpm are available, even with an integrated safety brake. The rotary type limit switch system may have up to 6 mechanical limit switches.

For unbalanced doors the TVR 8 gearbox is built with an integral falldown safety device, which has been tested and approved by the German TUV.

The control unit EU2 is a basic control unit for automatic doors and gates implemented in conformity with the latest CEN standards. It meets the safety, requirements and functional principles presented in standard pr EN 12453: "Industrial, commercial and garage doors; Safety in use of power-operated doors".

The control logic of the EU2 has been realised by software. The safety circuits are, however, connected directly in series with the motor control in such a way that no safety-related function is dependent on the mode of the programme or the electronics. The control unit is intended for door drive units the motor of which has a maximum nominal current value of 6 A at operation with standard contactor control. For high-speed doors or very heavy doors or gates the EU2 control can be completed with a frequency inverter to provide stepless speed adjustment, soft starts and accurate, controlled deceleration to stop positions.

EU2 control has also optional software for Ovitor's drive units with travel limit positions implemented by an inductive pulse coder and a reference limit switch. For overhead doors with a pneumatic or an electronic safety edge the EU2 can be delivered with an automatic "pull back" feature to increase the lifetime of the edge.

Ovitor OY specialises in designing and manufacturing drive units and control systems for industrial doors and gates. The company was established in 1953 and is one of Europe's largest manufacturers of its kind with an annual production of more than 30,000 drive units.

The TEMEC drive units it produces are well known for their high quality and reliable construction. The quality system complies with the requirements of the standard ISO 9001, and has been certified by SFS.

Ovitor OY's competitive edge is to provide fast product changes and tailor-made products both for drive units and control systems. The product programme covers standard products for all kinds of overhead doors, roller shutters, swing gates and sliding gates, folding doors, sliding doors as well as rapid rolling doors. The factory is located in Helsinki, Finland. The products are marketed through independent distributors in Europe, the United States, Korea and Japan.