Openings Studio – Door Specification & Inspection Software

Specifying, surveying, installing, inspecting and maintaining doors requires a vast amount of information. It is vital that all technical data is trustworthy and timely, a task made harder by the diversity of project stakeholders who are inevitably involved. Now a single software subscription, for PC, tablet and smartphone, can help you marshal all information across the whole life-cycle of a building without hassle — another case where digitalization delivers concrete benefits.

Openings Studio is a cloud-based, customizable configuration tool for the creation, visualization, modification and management of door openings. This unique application provides access to complete door information at all stages — from product concept to aftercare — and is available via a simple subscription for desktop and mobile devices.

“With Openings Studio, you no longer need to rely on paper or spreadsheets to manage doorset data — the complete door system, frame and related hardware information that building projects require,” explains Marc Ameryckx, BIM Development Manager at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions EMEIA.

“It’s all digitally managed in one place over the life of the building, which helps reduce costs and saves everyone’s time,”

Marc Ameryckx, BIM Development Manager at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions EMEIA

Delivering concrete benefits to every project stakeholder

“Openings Studio keeps a single, authoritative digital resource updated and transparent. It’s then available to every stakeholder at any point in the building’s life-cycle. The mobile app makes it easily accessible for everyone involved from wherever they are, even if they have no data connection,” adds Marc.

Project owners, designers and contractors all benefit at the start of a building’s life. Distributors and locksmiths can consult and update the digital resource when it is time for door installation or retrofitting. Site staff can access specification data for every opening via intelligent tags and QR codes — which again, saves time and cuts mistakes. Maintenance teams and inspectors can rely on Openings Studio as a living digital resource when they need authoritative door information to do their jobs properly.

“Specifying, ordering, installing, documenting and compliance checking for doors are all simplified with Openings Studio,” he says.

Openings Studio simplifies door management at every stage

Openings Studio is already deployed all over the world as a specification and ordering tool for building projects. It can deliver detailed door solution specifications directly to popular packages such as Revit^® and ARCHICAD ^®, for example. Openings Studio updates everything with the latest design or specification information, drawing on a detailed database with colour, size, thickness and certifications for every product; as well as installation and compliance information, Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and more.

This unified digital thread which connects all project partners minimizes the error rate in door deliveries. It eliminates the confusion which comes with stakeholders having to juggle multiple versions of documents. Openings Studio can help contractors to calculate costs accurately and prevents them ordering doors with the wrong functions, bringing financial and project management benefits.

Over a building lifetime, Openings Studio remains current and accessible. Handover from construction to facility management is smoother. Everyone working on the building, now and in the future, finds the information they need quickly within Openings Studio, and can share it easily. This authoritative resource informs site audits, health and safety policy, maintenance or service schedules, refurbishment and more.

Major benefits from the concept stage to later in the life-cycle

On a large project for Østre Landsret, the High Court for Denmark’s Eastern region, Openings Studio was the tool which underpinned door meetings, ensuring efficient decision-making and component delivery for every door closer, lock and cylinder.

According to Per Løvstad, Sales Manager at SWEDOOR JW Denmark^*, “cooperation consists of a total review of the entire door project, door by door, so that our mutual customer feels safe and secure that the doors and the entire package fit together. I can only recommend this collaboration to anyone who has to go through larger projects with doors and fittings.”

At the opposite end of the building cycle, Openings Studio maximizes the effectiveness of fire door inspection by safeguarding a reliable, up-to-date source of specification info. Doorview, who conduct independent fire inspections in the London area, looked for a solution which would streamline interactions with customers.

“The Openings Studio app allows us to instantly share fire door inspection reports with our clients,” says Doorview’s Jody Purcell. The mobile app equips inspectors with powerful, speedy and transparent reporting tools by leveraging the same information from the beginning of the design phase through to maintenance of the completed structure.

The app also helps Doorview implement a remedial action list, which reassures the client that their building is compliant and safe. Maintenance staff instantly upload a photo when any compliance refits are complete. Working digitally with Openings Studio assures the transparency of this important process.

“With Openings Studio, at every stage of the building cycle, openings are made easy,” says Marc.