Six Companies Join Certification Program

© 2003 Door & Access Systems
Publish Date: Spring 2003
Author: Tom Wadsworth
Pages 35


Six Companies Join Certification Program

Six companies have submitted products to be certified as part of DASMA’s new product certification and labeling program. The companies were announced at the DASMA Annual Meeting in February.

The six companies are First United Door Technologies, Mid-America, Overhead Door, Safe-Way, Wayne-Dalton, and Windsor Door.

The program, which officially launched in January, allows manufacturers to place labels with certified performance ratings on commercial and residential garage doors. Each certification label includes four performance ratings: positive and negative wind load pressures, cycle life, R-value, and compliance with fire-related code requirements for foam plastics.

R-value or U-factor?

However, also at February’s DASMA Annual Meeting, the Commercial & Residential Garage Door Division decided to consider changing the R-value rating to a U-factor. Joe Hetzel, DASMA technical director, says the U-factor is being increasingly used as a measure of thermal performance, particularly in other window and door associations.

The U-factor is simply the reciprocal of the R-value (i.e. an R-value of 5.0 is the equivalent of a U-factor of 0.20 or 1/5). The committee will determine if a U-factor rating will replace the R-value or if both ratings will be listed together.

The new DASMA labeling program has been compared to nutrition labeling on foods and energy labels on home products like water heaters and windows. With certified ratings, consumers, design professionals, builders, code officials, and others can have greater assurance of the accuracy of posted ratings. The four ratings will be verified by Omega Point, an independent not-for-profit testing firm.

Since the program was developed by a broad-based coalition of garage door manufacturers, widespread industry participation is expected. As the program grows, Omega Point and DASMA will make available a directory of all products enrolled in the program.

Manufacturer participation in the program is voluntary, and manufacturers can voluntarily choose which products will seek labeling.