Magnetic devices to hold open doors in Chrysler Hall make the building more accessible.Magnetic devices to hold open doors in Chrysler Hall make the building more accessible.

Devices hold open doors in Chrysler Hall

The installation of hold-open devices on many of the doors in Chrysler Hall will make the building easier to navigate for persons with mobility and visual disabilities, says accessibility and human rights manager Anne Mullen.

“The need to push or pull the doors open has been eliminated,” she says. “The upgrade reflects the University of Windsor’s on-going commitment to accessibility.”

The devices—52 of them in the tower, north and south sections of Chrysler Hall—hold the doors to the walls with magnets wired into the building’s emergency system. In the event of a fire, the doors automatically close, inhibiting the spread of fire.

“If you are travelling through the building, please do not close the doors,” Mullen says. “They are designed to stay open.”

The project cost over $100,000, shared by the University and the federal government’s Enabling Accessibility Fund.