Commercial Fence Installation: New Perimeters, Enclosures and Gates

On a commercial site the fence is one line item among many, and it usually goes in late, after paving and before occupancy. That leaves little room for a second trip. We price from the plans or from a walk of the site, confirm the details that drawings tend to leave open, and build it once.

QC Fence Contractors installs commercial fence from offices across the Charlotte metro in North Carolina and in Rock Hill, South Carolina, for owners, property managers and general contractors.

• Chain link: galvanized or black vinyl coated, with top rail or tension wire, in heights to suit the use.
• Privacy slats in chain link where a yard has to be screened.
• Ornamental steel and aluminum picket fence for street frontage and multifamily communities.
• Wood and vinyl screening fence along property lines that back up to homes.
• Dumpster enclosures with steel-framed gates.
• Tennis court and ball field fence.
• Swing gates and sliding or cantilever gates for vehicle entrances.

1. 1. Scope. We review the drawings or walk the site, measure, and confirm heights, finishes, gate sizes and who is supplying operators and power.
2. 2. Written estimate. The estimate lists footage, system, gates and assumptions, so it can be compared line by line.
3. 3. Submittals. Where the job calls for them, we supply product information for approval before ordering.
4. 4. Layout and locates. The line is staked against the site plan and buried utilities are marked.
5. 5. Posts and framework. Posts are set in concrete. Terminal and gate posts are larger and deeper than line posts.
6. 6. Fabric, panels and gates. Mesh is stretched or panels are hung, gates are installed and adjusted, and hardware is checked.
7. 7. Walkthrough. We walk the finished fence with you or the superintendent and correct anything on the list.

Gate openings are the usual gap. A drawing may show a twenty foot opening without saying whether the gate swings or slides, which way it opens, or whether the pavement slopes across it. A swing gate needs level ground through its whole arc. A sliding gate needs room beside the opening to roll back. Settling this before the posts go in saves cutting concrete later.

Grade changes and pavement edges are the next. Chain link can follow uneven ground. Ornamental panels have to be stepped or racked, and that changes how the bottom of the fence meets the grade. Where the fence runs along a retaining wall or a curb, post mounting has to be worked out with whoever built the wall.

Zoning and screening requirements for commercial property are set locally and differ between jurisdictions. The owner or the design team should confirm them with the planning office. We build to the approved plan.