Builders' hardware or just builders hardware is a group of

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

hardware specifically used for protection, decoration, and convenience in buildings. Building products do not make any part of a building, rather they support them and make them work. It usually supports fixtures like

window A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof, or vehicle that allows the exchange of light and may also allow the passage of sound and sometimes air. Modern windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent ma ...

door A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide securit ...

s, and cabinets. Common examples include

door handle A door handle or doorknob is a handle used to open or close a door. Door handles can be found on all types of doors including: exterior doors of residential building, residential and commercial buildings, internal doors, cupboard doors and vehic ...

s, door hinges, deadbolts, latches, numerals, letter plates, switch plates, and door knockers. Builders hardware is commonly available in

brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

, and

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

. Well known suppliers of builders hardware mainly exist in China, India, Mexico and some in the U.S.

Classifications

While builders hardware is classified by supplying at least one of the three attributes listed above, it is usually broken down by where it is used, or by usage.

Bathroom hardware

Bathroom hardware includes the products that are used in constructing and maintaining the bathroom appearance and decoration. Bathroom products includes

faucet A tap (also spigot or faucet: see usage variations) is a valve controlling the release of a fluid. Nomenclature United Kingdom * Tap is used in the United Kingdom and most of the Commonwealth for any everyday type of valve, particularly ...

shower A shower is a place in which a person bathes under a spray of typically warm or hot water. Indoors, there is a drain in the floor. Most showers are set up to have adjustable temperature, spray pressure and showerhead nozzle angle. The si ...

s, holders, tubs, shelves, mirrors etc.

Door hardware

All those products that are used either in door decoration, maintenance, or in any other function come under door hardware, such as door handles, fasteners,

hinge A hinge is a mechanical bearing that connects two solid objects, typically allowing only a limited angle of rotation between them. Two objects connected by an ideal hinge rotate relative to each other about a fixed axis of rotation, with all ...

s, hooks, number plates, knockers,door eyes etc.

Furniture hardware

Furniture hardware are those products that are used to support the furniture look, design and durability. Furniture hardware products include furniture frames, furniture legs, furniture arms, etc.Jijuan, Z., 2006. Decorating functions of traditional Chinese furniture hardware accessories ''Furniture & Interior Design'', ''10'', p.018.

Safety & security hardware

Buildings, goods and their occupants needs protection from fire, intruders, and other external agents. Proper protection systems include fire safe security system, home monitoring, smoke detectors, locksets, window guards, etc.

Plumbing hardware

Plumbing hardware products are used for supplying water throughout the building using hose, pipes and tubes. These hardware products ensure that water is supplied properly and continuously. Since water runs or remains all the time in these products, it is needed that the materials with which these products are highly

corrosion Corrosion is a natural process that converts a refined metal into a more chemically stable oxide. It is the gradual deterioration of materials (usually a metal) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Corrosion engine ...

resistant and can withstand extreme temperatures. The most common materials are

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

aluminum Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

and PVC.

Cabinet hardware

The products that are used to make cabinets working come under cabinet hardware like cabinet fasteners, brackets, latches, hinges, pulls, locks, etc. Cabinet hardware are small components that make cabinets functional. These products are made of materials like

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

s and may be

glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

es.

Window hardware

Window hardware does not include window itself rather they are smaller components that are used to install, fix and protect windows, such as window extrusions, fasteners,

handle A handle is a part of, or an attachment to, an object that allows it to be grasped and object manipulation, manipulated by hand. The design of each type of handle involves substantial ergonomics, ergonomic issues, even where these are dealt wi ...

s, hinges, locks and many more.

Curtain hardware

Curtain hardware includes products like hooks, curtain rings, curtain finials, etc. These products are used to hang curtain at doors, windows, verandas, etc. Curtain hooks and poles are used to handle and move the curtains. Curtain hardware products are made of varieties of materials including metals and plastics. Mostly aluminum and iron are used for making rings, hooks, rods and poles.

References

Bibliography

* {{Citation , last = Towne , first = Henry Robinson , title = Locks and builders hardware: a hand book for architects , publisher = J. Wiley & sons , isbn=9781231158838, year = 1904 , url = https://books.google.com/books?id=MvcoAAAAYAAJ. Hardware (mechanical)