Steel Sliding Doors
Overview
The Sliding Doors feature allows you to apply a metal sliding door to either the side or end wall of a building.
This feature uses a simple drag-and-drop method to move the sliding door between bays.
⚠️ Important:
In addition to the open bay size that will house the sliding door, you must also consider the bay the door will slide into.
Why this is important
Enables flexible door placement for large openings and agricultural-style sheds.
Ensures doors align with available structural bays and frame spacing.
Supports functional and practical door movement across different designs.
Door sizes (openings)
Side walls
When adding a sliding door to a side wall, SMS automatically calculates the door size to match the bay width and eave height.
Example:
If you have a 4 m wide bay with a 4 m eave height, the sliding door will be approximately 3.7 m high × 4 m wide.
The slight height reduction accounts for components behind the door such as the eave purlin and sliding door header.
End walls
When adding a sliding door to an end wall, SMS calculates the door size based on the end wall bay width and eave height.
Note:
Bay widths on an end wall are determined by end wall mullion positions, which can be viewed using the end wall grid line markers in the design layout.
Sliding direction
Each time a sliding door is applied to an end or side wall, a directional arrow appears indicating the door’s slide direction.
A broken line will also appear in the adjacent bay, showing which bay the door will slide into when fully open.
When two sliding doors are placed beside each other:
Double tracking is required unless the doors open in opposite directions.
Consider how this affects the available opening space and design practicality.
Important notes
Maximum track configuration: Double tracking only (SMS does not support triple tracking).
Maximum door size: 6 m high × 6 m wide.
All sliding doors are supplied as base rolling only — details appear in the General Specifications of the quote letter.
Sliding doors are only available in Wind Regions A and B.
Clearance openings behind the sliding door are affected by portal frame components (e.g. columns and eave purlins), which may reduce usable opening height.
Removing and repositioning sliding doors
To remove a sliding door
Right-click over the sliding door and select Delete.
To reposition or change slide direction
Right-click over the sliding door.
Choose the new slide direction (left or right).
SMS will automatically adjust the layout and track orientation.
Tips, best practices & troubleshooting
Check the bay the door will slide into before finalising the design.
For double sliding door configurations, confirm opening overlap and track setup.
Avoid placing sliding doors in bays with internal obstructions or column conflicts.
Verify wind region compatibility — sliding doors are not suitable for Regions C or D.
Related resources
Review & updates
Version history:
v1.0 – 19 April 2025
v2.0 - 11 November 2025
Article information
Category: Estimation View & Shed Design
Target audience: Estimators, SMS users, and design teams
Business owner:
Version: v2.0
Last reviewed: 11 November 2025