Services

Automatic Gate & Fence Engineering

More than 80 automatic gate and fence projects — slide gates, swing gates, pedestrian gates, and perimeter fencing for apartment communities, commercial properties, and secured facilities across Northern California.

Request a quote Call (916) 835-3588

What I Provide

  • Gate and fence plan sheets: site plan, elevations, details, notes, and a footing schedule
  • Structural calculations for posts, gate frames, guide posts, and footings under ASCE 7 wind and seismic loads
  • Slide-gate design to ASTM F2200, with operator and entrapment-protection notes for UL 325
  • Electrical one-line and load schedule for gate operators, coordinated with the contractor’s electrician
  • Fire access: Knox key switches and exit hardware coordinated with the fire district (CFC 503.6)
  • Exit analysis for pedestrian gates on egress paths
  • Written responses to building-department and fire-district plan check

How It Works

  1. Scope the site. The gate contractor or owner sends the site plan, gate locations, and product selections — operator, gate style, and fence panels.
  2. Design. Footings are sized from the project geotechnical report or, where there is none, from the CBC’s presumptive soil values, and gates are detailed to ASTM F2200.
  3. Plans and calculations. A stamped plan set and calculation package is issued for building and fire review.
  4. Plan check. I answer corrections from the building department and the fire district — gate height, access, hardware, and egress.
  5. Construction. I stay available for field questions and substitutions through installation.

What to Send for a Quote

  • Site plan or aerial with the gate and fence locations
  • Gate operator, gate style, and fence product selections
  • Project address and the reviewing city, county, and fire district
  • The geotechnical report, if one exists
  • Your bid or installation date

Automated slide gates and egress gates

Citrus Heights, CA2026In review

Design engineer: gate and fence plans and structural calculations

Two 22-foot automated slide gates, seven pedestrian gates, and a perimeter fence at an existing 1973 apartment community, with an exit analysis and a five-size footing schedule.

Codes
CBC 2025 · ASCE 7-22 · ASTM F2200
Outcome
Resubmittal answering city and fire-district plan-check comments, October 2026.

Guardrails, handrails and pool barriers

Sacramento, CA2026

Design engineer: stamped calculations for a deferred submittal

Stair and balcony guardrails, handrails, a laminated-glass ramp guard, pool barriers, and fencing for a large apartment community.

Codes
CBC 2022 · ASCE 7-22 · ASTM E1300
Outcome
City structural and life-safety comments answered in the second plan-check cycle.

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Common Questions

Does an automatic gate need a permit and engineering?

Most cities and counties require a building permit for automatic vehicle gates, and fire districts review gates across fire access roads. Requirements vary by jurisdiction, so I confirm what the building department and fire district expect before design starts.

What is ASTM F2200?

The standard for automated vehicular gate construction. It covers openings, protrusions, and the guide posts that keep a slide gate from falling if it leaves its track. CBC Section 3110 requires automated vehicular gates to meet it, with operators listed to UL 325.

Can you engineer gates at an existing property?

Yes — most of my gate work is at existing apartment communities and commercial sites, including properties built decades before current codes. I work from site photos, aerials, and the existing conditions you send.

Who do you work for on gate projects?

Usually the gate contractor, sometimes the owner or property manager directly. Either way you deal with the engineer of record, not a project manager.