High‑security door hardware is essential to the performance and compliance of modern timber door systems. True protection comes from coordinated design, validated components, and system‑level integrity. When specified correctly, hardware strengthens safety, fire performance, and long‑term reliability. Read the full blog from BWF member Doorfit to understand why security must start at the design stage.
Why security performance must be designed and specified, not added later
Security is often discussed in terms of individual products such as locks, cylinders, or access control devices. Yet in practice, security performance is achieved at system level, particularly when doors form part of a timber doorset in residential, mixed-use, commercial, or public buildings.
When specifying for building environments, high-security door hardware should never be an afterthought. It must be considered alongside fire performance, durability, and compliance, and specified as part of a coordinated timber door solution.
When security hardware is selected independently of the door construction it serves, the result is frequently compromised performance, increased risk, and avoidable compliance issues.
Security starts with the timber door system:
A door’s resistance to attack, forced entry, and misuse is determined by more than the locking mechanism alone.
In timber door systems, security performance relies on the interaction between:
- The timber leaf construction (density, core type, and thickness)
- The frame and fixing method
- The ironmongery, including locks, hinges, closers, and cylinders
- The installation quality and tolerances
High-security hardware cannot compensate for an incompatible or under-specified timber door. Equally, a well-constructed timber doorset can have its performance undermined by inappropriate or poorly specified hardware. This reinforces the need to treat security as a design and specification issue, not a procurement exercise within a built environment.
High-security hardware, more than resistance to forced entry
Modern high-security door hardware must address a broad range of risks, particularly in multi-occupancy and mixed-use buildings where PAS 24 certification for the doorset and PAS 8621 certification for the multi-point lock have an essential part to play.
Key performance considerations include:
- Resistance to forced entry and attack
- Durability under frequent use
- Controlled access without compromising fire safety
- Compatibility with fire-rated timber doors
- Long-term maintainability and traceability
In many buildings, security hardware must operate in unison with other requirements, such as accessibility, means of escape, and fire performance, making coordinated specification essential.
The relationship between security and fire performance
One of the most common risks in door specification arises where security upgrades inadvertently compromise fire performance, a few examples include:
- High-security locks installed without supporting test evidence
- Additional fixings weakening the timber leaf or frame
- Door closers removed or disabled to improve ease of use
- Uncertified cylinders or hardware substituted on site
For timber fire doors, security hardware must be tested and validated as part of the doorset, not selected independently. Hardware that performs well in security testing may be entirely unsuitable for use in a fire-rated timber assembly and this is where we see security and fire related non-compliance often emerging later in a project lifecycle.
Best practice increasingly treats high-security door hardware as an integral component of a certified timber door system, rather than as a standalone upgrade.
Within a certified door system security hardware selection is guided by four key principles:
- Compatibility with timber door construction – Hardware is selected to suit the door’s mass, density, and fixing requirements.
- Fire and security alignment – Security hardware is validated for use within fire-rated timber doors, avoiding conflicts between performance requirements.
- Specification-led control – Specifier retains control over hardware selection through coordinated schedules and documentation.
- Traceability and continuity – Hardware choices are documented and maintained through installation, handover, and future maintenance.
This approach supports design intent while reducing the likelihood of site-based substitutions that compromise performance.
