Hart ’ s Typhoon shutter
Climate challenges boost Hart
A ferry ride across Hong Kong ’ s harbour in the early stages of a typhoon caused Doug Hart , chairman , Hart Door Systems , to pause – just what sort of technology would be needed to create a secure , protective , shutter that could withstand the full impact of a typhoon he asked himself writes Chris Dobson .
Research shows that typhoons and their sister storm , the hurricane could generate wind well in excess of 100 mph , enough at sustained levels to break any known shutter system .
“ The issues when faced with such violence is to secure buildings and potential weak areas such as loading bays and other access points . We were dealing with exceptional weather up to the super typhoon level . The power would break a standard shutter system ,” says Mr Hart . 28 FDPP - www . fdpp . co . uk
Encouraged by Hart ’ s Hong Kong partner , Hart ’ s team re-worked on its existing Terror Screen , which is a large and heavy security shutter that offers protection for up to 20 minutes against cutting , drilling , crowbars and axes due to its exceptional robustness , to create Hart ’ s typhoon shutter , many of which are now in service .
The development of this super shutter is timely given climate change and the likelihood of increasing storms . Indeed the UK was hit by several storms in quick succession starting with Arwen last November with sustained strong winds generating gusts up to 110 mph .
The devastation was considerable with evidence of damage to forests and property large-scale and still evident today .
With climate change the culprit there is a rush to minimise the impact of fossil fuels by accelerating the transition to clean energy . One hundred nations pledged to end deforestation by 2030 at the recent COP but record numbers of trees have been recently plundered from Brazil ’ s part of the Amazon .
Despite best intentions climate change is now a fact of life . How does this global conversation impact on regions such as North East England ? The late storms of 2021 , which continued into 2022 have already been referred to . But with damaging storms likely to be a feature of our weather pattern it is best to be prepared .
The initial Hong Kong experience has been an opportunity for Hart to develop a very strong shutter system . Just in time as storm Arwen was the first of many storms to sweep across the UK causing significant damage to property .