[lostcolony]

Sure...but it would cost less in materials, packing space, and machining, to replace a handle with a plate. Yes, standardizing both sides to be the same may offset that, but we're talking negligible amounts at that point. You'd actually save a measurable amount on an interior door if you went with metal or hollow core.

[warglebargle]

it’s a race to the bottom, no one thinks about the door usability so the cheap glass one wins (they might even eschew a push plate because of potential fingerprints on the glass) - when you’re building cookie cutter offices no one cares about how the door works. The primary concerns are appearance and cost.

[toomanyrichies]

Reminds me of a quote by a guy named Gordon Bethune, the former CEO of Continental Airlines: "You can make a pizza so cheap that no one wants to eat it."