Buyer guide · Door and hardware manufacturers
Locks and latches as a door component
If you build or supply doors, the lock is a component — and a component has to fit the hole you drilled last year, on the line, without a rework station.
Who this guide is for
What changes when this is the way you buy.
A component, not a catalogue item
A facility adapts the site to the lock. You cannot adapt the door to it, because the door is already drawn, jigged and in production.
That moves the conversation from which lock do you recommend to does this lock match this preparation, and the answer has to be yes before the order is placed.
The dimensions that decide whether it drops in
For a cylinder lock, three dimensions matter: the bore diameter of the cut-out, the cylinder length with its cam position, and the fixing centres where a cover plate is used. For latches and hasps the equivalent list is mounting-hole spacing, bolt throw and the strike arrangement.
What buyers like you ask us most
The questions that decide whether an order goes smoothly.
Can you match a lock to our existing door preparation?
Send the drawing you already use and we will tell you what matches and what does not, rather than approximating. If the nearest existing product differs, a physical sample settles it faster than another round of dimensions.
What is the most common near-miss when matching components?
Fixing centres. A cylinder can match on diameter and length and still fail because the mounting holes are a millimetre or two out — and that is discovered after the jig is already made.
Can keying be set at the factory?
Yes, and it has to be: keying cannot be changed after manufacture. If your customers are facilities, ask them for the key structure before you place the order, not after the doors are installed. Keyed-alike, keyed-different and master-key structures are all set at production.
Can you supply in bulk rather than retail packaging?
Yes — bulk cartons with a consistent count per carton, no individual packaging unless part of the order ships to an end customer separately, and carton marking that matches your goods-in process rather than a marketing design. Retail-ready packing can be added for the portion that goes to distribution.
What documentation can you provide for our customers?
Material grade, finish, and confirmation that test or compliance documents are available on request and tied to a specific product. We will tell you plainly which documents we can issue and which belong to another party, rather than implying an approval that has not been granted.
Where it usually goes wrong
The four mistakes we see most often in this kind of order — and the way around each.
A near-match that fails on fixing centres
Diameter and length are the visible dimensions; fixing centres are the ones that stop a component going on. Check all three before committing to a drawing.
Keying that reaches the supplier late
Once the cylinders are produced, rekeying means pulling them back out of the doors. Collect the key structure with the door order, not after it.
Retail packaging specified for a line order
Individually packed components slow a production line down. Use bulk for the line and retail packing only for the portion that goes to distribution.
Assuming a document exists because it was requested
Compliance documents are issued by particular parties for particular products. A request does not create one, and a supplier who says yes to everything is not helping you.
How we work with you
What the first conversation looks like, and what we need from you.
We work from your drawing, not a product photo
Send the door preparation and we will confirm what matches. Where the answer is not certain, we send a sample so it can be checked on the actual jig.
We set keying at production
Tell us the key structure with the order and it is built in. That is the only point at which it can be done.
We pack for the line
Bulk cartons, consistent counts, and carton marking that fits your goods-in process.
Send us the two things we always ask for
A photograph of the door, and the number of units you need to cover. That is enough for us to confirm the family, the cylinder size and what a first order would look like — before you commit to anything.
Related reading
Guides that go deeper on the points above, and the other buyer guides.
Working with Door and Hardware Suppliers: Components
Read the guide →
Fixing a Roll-Up Door That Won't Stay Latched
Read the guide →
How to Measure a Storage Cylinder Lock (17 mm vs 19 mm)
Read the guide →
Confirming Door Fit Before Production: Sample, Not Drawing
Read the guide →
Multi-Site Operators
Buyer guide →
Single-Facility Owners
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