Automated security gates help industrial sites control far more than unauthorised access. They manage the daily flow of staff, visitors, delivery couriers and HGVs, keep traffic moving safely, and provide a professional, managed entrance to the facility.
For the majority of factories, warehouses, distribution centres and multi-occupancy industrial estates, an automated sliding gate is the best all-round solution. Sliding and cantilever configurations create a strong, continuous physical boundary without taking up the large turning arcs required by hinged swing gates. They are reliable across wide openings, handle intensive duty cycles, and withstand tough industrial environments.
AGD Systems designs, manufactures, installs and maintains bespoke industrial automated gates, access control systems and traffic barriers nationwide.
Discuss your industrial entrance with our team
Speak to our team about your site requirements and arrange an industrial entrance survey.
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Physical security is often the initial reason for reviewing an entrance, but operational traffic control is usually what delivers daily value.
A busy industrial access point must handle morning shift arrivals, visiting contractors, couriers, articulated lorries, internal plant movements and emergency vehicles. Without automated access control, manual gates are routinely left open for convenience, delivery drivers wander into active forklift zones, and HGVs can end up waiting out on the public highway.
Automating the entrance allows you to:
| ✓ Keep the perimeter closed and secure between authorised vehicle movements | ✓ Prevent unauthorised vehicles using your yard as a turning point |
| ✓ Separate HGV delivery routes from visitor and staff car parks | ✓ Remove the safety hazard of drivers leaving cabs to open manual gates |
| ✓ Route delivery drivers straight to the correct weighbridge, bay or reception | ✓ Comply with workplace transport safety standards by controlling entry points |
| ✓ Maintain digital records of site traffic via access fobs, intercoms or ANPR | ✓ Prevent bottlenecks and tailbacks onto surrounding roads during shift changes |
Workplace transport safety: Health and Safety Executive workplace transport guidance advises that vehicular traffic and pedestrians must be segregated, traffic routes clearly defined, and site access properly managed. An engineered automated entrance is often the foundational step in achieving that compliance.
Industrial sliding gates are the preferred choice across the UK commercial sector because they offer maximum security with minimal loss of usable yard space.
Because a sliding gate opens parallel to the perimeter fence line, it does not swing inward across your internal roadways. That leaves the entire approach and exit zone completely clear for vehicles to queue, turn or park right up to the entrance line.
Sliding configurations are ideal for:
✓ Manufacturing plants and engineering facilities
✓ Logistics depots and national distribution hubs
✓ Industrial estates with shared access roads
✓ Waste processing, recycling and transfer stations
✓ Utilities compounds and critical infrastructure
✓ Builders merchants and trade counter yards
✓ Commercial vehicle storage depots and plant hire yards
Where ground conditions are challenging, a cantilever sliding gate is almost always superior to a tracked system. Variations in the ground throughout the seasons or just because the site may have gravel and other variable ground surfaces doesn’t affect the gate operation.
A conventional tracked sliding gate relies on an inverted ground track cast across the road surface. On a busy industrial site, that ground channel quickly fills with road grit, mud, loose gravel, salt and winter ice, leading to motor strain and travel faults. Heavy HGV axle weights can also damage the track over time.
A cantilever gate runs completely clear of the road surface. Supported by internal roller carriages anchored to a substantial concrete foundation off to one side, the gate leaf hangs across the opening without touching the road.
Cantilever systems provide distinct advantages:
✓ Zero track across the roadway, eliminating issues with mud, gravel and debris
✓ Unaffected by ground settlement, broken tarmac or frost heave
✓ Reliable operation in standing water, ice and snow
✓ No risk of ground track deformation under heavily loaded HGVs
✓ Easier civil work across the roadway because services beneath are not disturbed
A cantilever gate does require extra run-back space along the fence line to accommodate the counterbalance overhang, but where that side room exists, it represents the most durable, low maintenance entrance system available.
The right entrance system depends on available space, ground conditions, traffic frequency and the level of physical security required.
Cantilever sliding gates
Best suited to: Industrial yards, waste facilities, freight depots, and sites with uneven, sloping, or debris-prone ground.
Key advantage: Completely clear driveway opening with no ground track to clean, maintain, or freeze.
Space requirement: Requires roughly 30% to 40% additional run-back length along the fence line for the counterbalance tail.
Tracked sliding gates
Best suited to: Entrances where side run-back room is restricted and the road surface is level, clean, and well finished.
Key advantage: Can span very wide openings without the extended counterbalance overhang of a cantilever gate.
Space requirement: Minimal overhang beyond the opening width, but the ground track must be kept clean.
Automated swing gates
Best suited to: Lower frequency secondary entrances, estate offices, or premises where sliding run back space is unavailable.
Key advantage: Straightforward installation where fence lines do not allow sideways travel.
Space requirement: Demands large, clear internal sweep zones kept permanently clear of parked cars, vehicles and turning plant.
Automatic rising barriers
Best suited to: Managing daytime vehicle flow, staff parking, visitor check-in, and transport weighbridges.
Key advantage: Rapid opening speeds for high volume traffic management.
Space requirement: Compact footprint, though a barrier arm provides access management rather than physical boundary security.
An automated gate is only as effective as the access control system driving it. The hardware needs to make entry quick and effortless for authorised personnel while stopping unknown callers from driving past reception.
Typical access configurations include:
✓ Long-range radio transmitters for company vehicles, yard shunters, and plant
✓ Proximity cards or fobs integrated with your building time-and-attendance systems
✓ Anti-vandal digital keypads for out of hours contractor or cleaner access
✓ Commercial video intercoms linking HGV drivers directly to transport planning or security
✓ Timed automatic opening schedules for morning and evening shift handovers
✓ Induction ground loops for automatic safety detection and free vehicle exit
✓ Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) for pre-booked logistics arrivals
✓ Traffic lights, safety signage, and warning sounders to govern safe driver movement
For multi tenant estates, access profiles can be partitioned so each business manages its own staff permissions, delivery codes, and out of hours rights without compromising overall site security.
Why work with AGD Systems?
AGD Systems has been engineering, installing, and maintaining automatic entrance systems since 1986. Operating from our central facility in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, we deliver end-to-end commercial solutions across the UK.
1. Site Survey
Site survey, vehicle sweep-path review, and technical consultation.
2. Gate Design
In house structural gate design in heavy-duty steel or commercial-grade aluminium.
3. Installation
Complete mechanical installation, automation, and electrical commissioning. Integration with existing site access control, fire alarm systems, and CCTV networks.
4. Ongoing Support
Fast-response field repair engineering and preventative service contracts.
Powered industrial gates are legally classified as machines under UK health and safety law. When installed or significantly modified, they fall under the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008.
Workplace duty holders, including business owners, facilities managers, and commercial landlords, carry ongoing statutory responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 to keep work equipment in a safe operating condition.
Designed around site-specific risk assessment
Every AGD Systems industrial installation is designed around site specific risk assessment and fully complies with current British Standards, including BS EN 12453:2017:
01 Monitored optical safety edges along the leading edges and pinch zones to stop travel instantly on contact
02 Dual height infrared photocells and laser scanners to detect articulated lorries, low trailers, and pedestrians
03 Enclosed drive housings and mesh guarding to prevent trapping around drive pinions, rollers, and rear travel zones
04 Certified electronic force limitation built into the motor drive controls
05 Clear manual release protocols to allow safe local operation during power interruptions
06 Handover documentation complete with UKCA declaration of conformity and maintenance logs
Industrial entrance gates operate in harsh, demanding environments. Continuous cycling, dust, heavy vibration, and UK winter weather mean scheduled servicing is essential to avoid downtime and maintain legal safety compliance.
Our commercial service visits include:
SAFETY
Force testing of all crushing, shearing, and impact points
SENSORS
Full functional testing of safety edges, light curtains, photocell beams, and emergency stops
MECHANICAL
Inspection of cantilever guide rollers, support wheels, carriages, and end stops
STRUCTURE
Structural assessment of posts, gate leaf alignment, welded joints, and holding-down bolts
DRIVE SYSTEM
Testing of motor drive units, gearboxes, drive racks, limit switches, and manual release clutches
ACCESS
Verification of access control panels, intercom speech quality, and loop detector sensitivity
RECORDS
Written inspection certification for your site health and safety records
Arrange your industrial site survey
Whether you need to secure a new distribution facility, resolve constant track failures on an existing entrance, or bring your workplace traffic routes up to current safety standards, we can help.
Call our commercial team on 01933 229123 or email enquiries@agdsystems.co.uk to arrange an engineer site survey and tailored quotation.
Call 01933 229123 Email our team
