Garage Door Openers and Industrial Doors

TECHNOLOGY - I think garage door openers are one of the kewlest inventions to come out of the 1980s. I think they were first introduced in the 1980s, I cannot be certain, I just remember the ads for them on TV during the mid-1980s and I presume they were invented shortly before that time. (It is entirely possible they were invented before then.)

New technology was a big thing in the 1980s. It influenced the movies and TV shows. Shows like Airwolf (a supersonic helicopter that could do over Mach 1), MacGyver (a scientist / sleuth), Knight Rider (a car that can think and talk) and movies like TRON or the one Superman movie where the real danger ends up being an intelligent super computer. If you lived through the 1980s you can probably think of more.

Watching TV in the 1980s the wealthy people always had phones in their cars, garage doors that opened automatically and gadgets that the average person simply could not afford.

But now you can. Three decades later such things have become a lot cheaper (you can get a new cellphone for free, just sign your soul away on a contract) and gadgets like garage door openers are now easy to get.

In the industry of selling these things they're not even called garage door openers either. They're called Industrial Door Operators and the name to me sounds almost clinical and mechanical. I guess they called it an operator because it doesn't just open the door, it also closes it. Ah.

The only trick is that they really only work on one style of doors. Industrial Doors. So I really need to talk about that first. When looking to get a garage door make sure its compatible with the garage door opener you intend to use. (I think that is rather important, don't you?)

Companies like MICANON sell everything you need for your garage door. If you browse micanan.com you will see their broad range of services and products. The door itself and also:

Jackshaft Operators
Trolley Operators
Sliding Door Operators
Gate Operators (for those really rich people who have a walled estate and a gate blocking the driveway)

What I like about MICANON is that it is a Canadian company based in St-Regis Dorval, Quebec. Huzzah for Canadians!

They also have offices Phoenix, Arizona and also Atlanta, Georgia, which allows them to service basically anywhere in Canada or the USA.

Garage Door Openers I think is one of those conveniences we don't really think about much in the 2010s. Its old tech from decades ago. Its a gadget. Its really not that impressive in a world where we've become used to seeing Aston Martin convertibles with folding roofs that fold automatically in 10 to 15 seconds at the touch of button.

Or compared to robotic vacuum cleaners, webcams, tablet computers, smartphones with video cameras built in, eBook Readers. A simple trip to Future Shop or Best Buy will give you an idea of the mass market electronic marvels we now have... giant flat screen TVs with 3D glasses for your home entertainment system.

It really makes you realize how attached to our technology we now are... people addicted to Twitter and Facebook... and comparatively few people going outside and enjoying nature and life as it was meant to be.

So if you have a car here's an idea: Go take a drive in the country. Pick a lake on a map and go drive there to have a look. Take your camera with you if you must have a gadget.

Just remember to close the garage door on your way out.