The doors, windows and screens that let in light and air and keep the weather and insects out — and the hardware that makes them lock, seal and last.
Each decision below is shown three ways — what it changes in use, which way it moves the cost, and how it looks. Price direction only. The responsible supplier confirms the quotation after measurement and specification.
Specifiable · quotation requiredCoordinated by ELS · quoted after validation.The door, its frame, architrave, hinges, lock and handles are one package, supplied by one party.
Ordinary clear glass in the frame — bright and neutral, and the baseline the performance option is compared with. Guidance only — no product is implied.
Cost impact
Whether a package includes it, and the final price, are confirmed in the quotation.
How it looks
Clear and bright, with nothing to mark it out.
Laminated / performance glazing
In use
Heavier frames with laminated or insulated glass cut heat, noise and UV and add security — best on a west face or a noisy road; the most spec. Guidance only — no product is implied.
Cost impact
Higher
How it looks
Substantial, precise frames and deep glass; a quiet, cool, resolved envelope.
Reuse what is there — no cost, but old aluminium or timber frames may leak air, water and noise, and warp in the humidity. Guidance only — no product is implied.
Cost impact
Included
How it looks
The existing frames and proportions are kept as-is.
Replace the existing windows
In use
Take out the old frames and fit new ones — the way to change how a window opens, seals and performs; the opening is measured and the new frame fitted to the wall, so it is the larger job. Guidance only — no product is implied.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
A new frame line and proportion, chosen together with the opening operation and the glazing.
casementUse The Sarawak standard — powder-coated aluminium resists corrosion and termites, opens for breeze and seals against monsoon rain.Cost LowLook Clean powder-coated frames in your chosen colour; crisp, durable openings.
slidingUse Wide sliding panels bring in light and a view and open a room to a balcony or yard; tracks and drainage are detailed for driving rain.Cost ModerateLook Broad glass panels and slim frames — the wall opens up; the most light and the best view.
The Sarawak standard — powder-coated aluminium resists corrosion and termites, opens for breeze and seals against monsoon rain.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
Clean powder-coated frames in matte black or silver; crisp, durable openings.
Watch out
Cannot be left open in rain, and a full sash needs robust hinges in a coastal or humid location.
Aluminium awning (top-hung)
In use
Top-hung and opening outward from the bottom, the sash sheds rain while it stays open — the one window you can leave ajar through a Sarawak downpour. The opening is narrower than a casement's, so it ventilates rather than floods a room with air; friction stays hold it at any angle.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
A horizontal sash line with the pane tilted out at the base — a lighter, more horizontal rhythm than side-hung casements.
Watch out
Restricts the clear opening, so it ventilates less than a casement of the same size.
Sliding / large glazed
In use
Wide sliding panels bring in light and a view and open a room to a balcony or yard; tracks and drainage are detailed for driving rain.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
Broad glass panels and slim frames — the wall opens up; the most light and the best view.
Watch out
Only half the opening ever ventilates, and the bottom track collects dirt and needs regular clearing.
Fixed pane (picture window)
In use
No sash and no opening — typically the lowest-cost way to buy daylight and a view, with nothing to seal, latch or maintain. It gives no ventilation at all, so it pairs with an opening window or mechanical ventilation rather than replacing one.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
The slimmest frame and the largest uninterrupted glass — the window disappears and the view remains.
Project-only · assessment required · Hidden doorsCoordinated by ELS · quoted after validation.
ELS specifiesVerify on site
Flush jib doorEssentialLow$
Bookcase / shelf doorBespokeHigher$$$
Mirror doorSignatureModerate$$
Panel-matched concealed doorSignatureModerate$$
Touch-latch handleless doorEssentialLow$
See what each option changes
Flush jib door
In use
A frameless leaf set flush with the wall on concealed hinges with a push or touch release, so it reads as solid wall until you open it. Build it on a moisture-stable, termite-resistant core with fully sealed edges — Sarawak humidity swells a natural-timber leaf until it binds and jams in its frame.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
Disappears into the wall — the same paint or finish runs straight across, broken only by a hairline reveal. The quietest way to hide a doorway.
Bookcase / shelf door
In use
A full shelf unit that pivots or swings open on heavy-duty hardware — a favourite for a study, store or private room. Because a loaded carcass is heavy, it needs a robust pivot and a moisture-resistant frame that will not sag, rack or drop out of alignment in the humidity.
Cost impact
Higher
How it looks
The most theatrical concealment — a wall of books or display that opens as a door. Nobody reads it as an entrance.
Mirror door
In use
A concealed leaf faced in mirror that doubles as a full-length looking glass and bounces daylight deeper into the room. Near a bathroom or wet zone, specify a moisture-sealed backing and sealed edges so Sarawak humidity and condensation cannot creep behind the silvering and black-spot it.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
Reads as a mirrored panel, not a door — it expands a narrow hallway or bedroom and lifts the light. Seamless and space-making.
Panel-matched concealed door
In use
The door face is clad in the same wall panelling — fluted timber, veneer, slat or composite — so the grain, reeding and joint lines run unbroken across it. Alignment is everything, so panels and substrate must be dimensionally stable; in humidity a mismatched material opens gaps at the seams.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
The seam vanishes into the panel rhythm — fluting or grain continues as though the wall were never cut. A refined, architectural concealment.
Touch-latch handleless door
In use
A push-to-open touch latch means no handle at all — press the leaf and it releases, so nothing breaks the surface. Set the reveal a touch generously: a leaf that swells slightly in Sarawak humidity must still clear and re-latch cleanly, and the latch itself should be corrosion-resistant.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
The purest handleless read — an unbroken plane with no pull, no plate, no line. Touch it and the wall opens.
Specifiable · quotation requiredCoordinated by ELS · quoted after validation.The door, its frame, architrave, hinges, lock and handles are one package, supplied by one party.
ELS specifies
Basic handle setIncluded
Lever-on-rose + concealed hingesSignatureLow$
Perimeter seals + soft-closeBespokeModerate$$
See what each option changes
Basic handle set
In use
Standard lever handles on a backplate with ordinary butt hinges — everything a bedroom or bathroom door needs to latch, lock and swing. It does the job day to day, though lighter finishes can dull or spot over time in humid coastal air, and the door meets its frame across a plain open gap. Expect the familiar feel of a builder-grade door: functional and unfussy, with nothing that draws the hand or the eye.
Cost impact
Included
How it looks
Reads as a normal door from across the room — clean and unremarkable. The hinge knuckles show along the frame edge, which is completely standard.
Lever-on-rose + concealed hinges
In use
A lever set on a compact round rose sits more precisely in the hand, and concealed hinges let the door hang flush and be fine-tuned so it swings true and stays aligned as timber moves with the seasons. With nothing exposed on the frame edge, there is less hardware to catch dust or wipe around, which suits humid rooms. Day to day the door simply feels tighter and better sorted every time you use it.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
Cleaner and quieter to the eye — the small rose reads as a deliberate detail, and with the hinges hidden the closed door shows an unbroken line down the frame.
Perimeter seals + soft-close
In use
Compression seals run around the frame so the door closes against a continuous soft edge instead of an open gap, cutting more of the corridor, rain and household noise that carries under and around an ordinary door — noticeably quieter, without promising silence. Soft-close hardware catches the door in the last stretch so it settles shut on its own rather than banging, sparing sleeping children and slamming in an evening breeze. Where a rated level matters it is specified against the doorset manufacturer's tested specification, and the seals also hold back draughts and dust.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
Looks all but identical from across the room — the seals tuck into the frame rebate and the closer stays hidden — so the difference is felt in the hand and the hush, not seen.
Specifiable · quotation required · Safety & monitoringCoordinated by ELS · quoted after validation.
ELS coordinates
Cylinder deadboltIncluded
Mortice multi-point lockSignatureLow$
Digital smart lockBespokeModerate$$
See what each option changes
Cylinder deadbolt
In use
Day to day this is a straightforward key-in-and-turn lock that throws a single bolt into the frame. It does the everyday job of securing the door, and copes with Sibu's humidity as long as the cylinder is kept clean and lightly lubricated. One turn, one point of hold, quick to use and simple to re-key if a key is lost.
Cost impact
Included
How it looks
From the corridor it reads as a normal keyed entrance, a single escutcheon and handle with nothing that signals a security upgrade. The difference between this and the tiers above is felt in the hardware, not seen on the door face.
Mortice multi-point lock
In use
Turning the key or lifting the handle throws several bolts into the frame at once, top, centre and bottom, so the door is pulled tight along its whole height. In daily use it feels more solid to close and sits flatter against the frame, and the fuller engagement helps the leaf resist warping and rattling in heavy rain and wind. More points to force means it is harder to lever open, and the tighter seal also cuts a little more of the corridor and weather noise.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
On the door face it reads almost the same as a standard lock, the same single handle and keyway, so nothing announces the upgrade. What changes is along the edge of the leaf, where the extra locking points sit hidden inside the frame.
Digital smart lock
In use
Everyday entry becomes keyless, with a code, fingerprint or phone unlocking the door, and it can auto-lock behind you, so the house is less likely to be left open by accident. This suits a household where several people come and go, or letting in a cleaner or relative without cutting a spare key. In a humid coastal climate keep the battery and sensors maintained, and keep a mechanical key backup for a power or battery failure.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
This is the one option you can actually see, a keypad or touch panel replacing the plain keyway and giving the entrance a more contemporary, considered face. Choose a finish that sits with the door and handle rather than fighting them.
A single cam handle swings the sash shut and holds it there — the operation almost everyone already knows, worked easily with one hand. Upkeep is minimal: an occasional wipe and a drop of lubricant keeps it smooth through Sibu's humidity. Security and sealing rest on that one catch point, so in wind-driven rain the sash can rattle a little more than a locked, multi-point setup.
Cost impact
Whether a package includes it, and the final price, are confirmed in the quotation.
How it looks
A slim, unobtrusive handle that sits close to the frame — the standard, quiet look you would expect on any aluminium window.
Friction stays + lockable handle
In use
Friction stays let the sash hold steady at whatever angle you set, so a sudden gust or an evening breeze will not swing it wide or bang it shut — handy on upper floors and along breezy terrace corridors. The handle takes a key, so a window left ajar for airflow can still be locked against a reaching hand. Day to day it feels more controlled and reassuring than a plain latch, with the stay arms wanting only an occasional clean to keep grit out.
Cost impact
Low
How it looks
From the street it still reads as an ordinary window — the stays tuck into the reveal and the handle is only a touch more substantial. The difference is felt in use, not seen.
Multi-point locking
In use
One turn of the handle drives several bolts into the frame at once, pulling the whole sash tight against its seals instead of holding it at a single point. Pressed evenly all round, the window sits more weathertight against wind-driven rain and cuts more of the road and downpour noise from outside — noticeably quieter, though not silent. It is also markedly harder to force, which matters on ground-floor and easily reached openings, and the handle action feels solid and deliberate every time.
Cost impact
Moderate
How it looks
Looks identical from outside — the same clean handle, no extra visible ironmongery. What changes is the seal and the sense of security you feel each time it closes.
A real figure belongs only to what ALUMAX supplies; appointed-trade works — electrical, air-conditioning, ceiling, flooring, painting, data and security — are quoted by the trade, and loose items follow the purchasing arrangement in your appointment. ELS specifies and coordinates throughout. Cost is a relative direction only, never a price; maintenance is described in each option's “In use”.
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