16 Industry News Also online at www.dijonline.co.uk Door Industry Journal Summer 2026 A letter to the industry from Andy Collett, Managing Director, GfA UK Training, Trust, and the Future of Industrial Doors Why the industry must embrace change — not fear it The industrial door industry is entering a defining period of change. Across the UK and Europe, businesses are facing a growing shortage of skilled installation and service engineers. Experienced professionals are retiring, fewer apprentices are entering the trade, and companies are under increasing pressure to do more with less. FOR MANUFACTURERS, installers, and service providers alike, this presents a serious operational challenge. Margins are already under pressure. Time on-site is costly. Training new engineers takes time and investment. And as systems become more advanced, there is a growing risk that technology itself becomes viewed as another obstacle. But this is precisely the moment when the industry must avoid paralysis through resistance. The future of industrial doors will not be secured by avoiding change. It will be secured by helping engineers and businesses adapt to it confidently. At GfA, this has long shaped our philosophy toward product development and training. The Industry Cannot Afford Resistance to Innovation There is often a natural hesitation whenever new control technology enters the market. Engineers who have spent years mastering familiar systems can understandably worry that “next-generation” products will mean complexity, disruption, or extensive retraining. That concern is not unique to industrial doors. Every technical industry faces the same challenge: how to modernise without alienating the very people responsible for installation and service. The danger comes when resistance slows progress. Modern industrial doors are increasingly expected to deliver more than simply opening and closing reliably. Customers now expect smarter diagnostics, better compliance visibility, remote support capability, faster commissioning, and more efficient maintenance processes. Regulations are evolving. Digitalisation is becoming unavoidable. Service expectations are rising. If the industry resists these developments, the burden on already-stretched engineering teams only becomes greater. Technology should reduce pressure on engineers — not create more of it. That principle has guided the development of GfA’s new TS-C platform. Familiarity Matters One of the biggest mistakes manufacturers can make when introducing new systems is forcing installers and service engineers to completely relearn how they work. That creates downtime, uncertainty and frustration. The TS-C range was designed differently. While the platform introduces major technological advancements, the operational logic remains intentionally familiar. Engineers already experienced with the TS Control Panel range will immediately recognise the structure, functionality and workflow of the new TS-C Control Panels. This matters enormously in today’s labour environment. Businesses do not have the luxury of removing engineers from site for lengthy retraining programmes. They need continuity. They need confidence. They need products that allow experienced engineers to transfer their existing knowledge directly into newer systems.
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