In our previous post on Rack Cases, we discussed IT equipment and electronics transportation, its importance to certain industries, and how Rack Cases facilitate the transportation and protection of electronics. If you decided that Rack Cases are just what you need for your electronics equipment, the next thing to do is consider what you'll need specifically for your equipment, which will aid you in choosing the right rack case for your needs. In this post, we'll do our best to help you along that journey.
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How will you be using the Rack Case?
The first thing you will want to consider is how you will be using the Rack Case to transport your IT equipment. Will you be shipping it? How far? Or will you be traveling short distances? This is an essential question that will give you a rough idea of how much protection you actually need and whether or not you might need a more off-the-shelf rack case or something more customisable.
Considerations for rack cases
Once you've contemplated how you will be using the case, you can get down into the nitty-gritty in your consideration process to whittle down the rack case options at your disposal. The first thing you'll start with is the fragility of the equipment to be housed in the rack case, followed by the height in rack units, depth and lastly the weight of the equipment.
G-Fragility Rating
Different Rack Cases are engineered to withstand more or less impact and will therefore protect your equipment to one degree of fragility or another. The best way to determine the fragility of your equipment is through the G-Fragility rating. The Fragility Rating indicates how well an electronic device is protected against impacts. The fragility of an item is normally expressed in 'G' units. These G Units are a measure of the force exerted on bodies by the earth's gravitational pull. Products with a larger g-force rating require less protection from shock and vibration.
For instance, an item with 20 G fragility will suffer damage when subjected to a force 20 times that of earth's gravity. If your equipment were to have a 20 G fragility rating, it'd be considered very delicate equipment and would be akin to the fragility of an egg. On the flip side, some electronics equipment can get up to a rating of 120 G or more, which is considered very rugged. A cell , for example, has a fragility rating of 300 G.
The fragility of an instrument or piece of equipment is usually determined by laboratory testing and in many cases the manufacturer of the equipment to be housed in the case will indicate the G Fragility Rating on the equipment.
Download our FREE G-Fragility rating guide by clicking on the button below.
Rack Height in Rack Units
As we explained in our previous post on the subject of rack cases, the height of equipment that is mounted in racks is measured in rack units. A rack unit, abbreviated as U and sometimes RU, is the standard unit of measurement applied to rack mounts and the servers, disk drives and other devices that they contain. A rack unit corresponds to a height of 1.75 inches or 44.45 millimetres. Thus you will often see rack cases of different heights appended with the number of rack units the case can accommodate, such as for example, a 4U rack case. This rack case would be able to accommodate an electric module with a height of four rack units.
Weight of the equipment
Next you'll want to take into consideration the weight of the equipment to be housed in the case. The weight of the equipment will help to determine which rack case is right for your equipment in addition to the height and fragility.
Rack Depth
The last thing you'll want to consider is the depth of the case. The standard depth for Rack Cases is usually 24 inches or 36 inches, the 29-inch and 30-inch rack depth is becoming more popular for electronic modules that are being manufactured more recently.
Peli-Hardigg Customisable and off-the-Shelf Racks
Peli offers a wide range of standard off-the-shelf sizes and configurations of rack cases; however, many scientific, industrial, military and commercial equipment require a customised solution and therefore Peli Rack Cases can be customised with different additional features. Some of these features include, humidity indicators, caster wheels, drawers, removable frames, comfort grip handles, logos and much more.
If you'd like to find out exactly what case would best fit your needs, Peli would be happy to help. Click on the button below to talk to a Peli engineer today!
Contact us to discuss your requirements of custom rack mount enclosures. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.
Learn more about Peli Rack Mount Cases
We are often asked for assistance to help select a 19' Network Cabinet Rack. Before we get to the tips, let's just define what a 19' Network Cabinet Rack is. Typically, these racks are used for mounting 19' equipment such as hubs, switches, routers, bridges, gateways, multiplexers, transceivers, firewalls and servers. The components will either have mounting ears to directly mount within the cabinet (see more below) or will be placed on shelves within the rack. The purpose of these racks is to protect the equipment by securely storing them by getting them up off of the floor and often consolidating them in many layers. There are many types of network cabinet racks and we will not address them specifically in this blog but will rather focus on some of the basics.
SIZE DOES MATTER IN SELECTING YOUR NETWORK CABINET RACK
There are a few key dimensions to keep in mind when you are specifying your network rack.
The first is panel height. This is different than the overall height as it is the clear space into which you can mount your components. It is basically the height of the opening within the rack. It is important to add up the height of the items you are looking to mount to be sure they will all readily fit. Don't forget to include any air ventilation space you may need between components. That does not mean that overall height is not important. We have had customers who order a large rack only to find that the ceiling in the room they are using is not high enough. Finally, be sure there is enough depth space for your deepest components.
WHAT IS YOUR APPROACH FOR MOUNTING YOUR COMPONENTS IN YOUR NETWORK CABINET?
All network cabinet racks come with panel mounting rails. These are long relatively thin pieces of formed metal that are used in pairs to mount the mounting ears of your component into the rack. They will typically be pre-drilled on EIA spacing. EIA spacing is the industry standard that goes back to the early days of telephony well over 100 years ago. The holes on your equipment and on the panel mounting rails will be set on this standard which is based on the space between holes of 5/8', 5/8', ½' which will total 1-3/4' This dimension is known as a 'u' for unit and racks are often specified as multiples of the 'u' or 1-3/4'. A typical dimension for a networking cabinet rack is 45u (77') or 46u (78.75'). You will also need to determine if you need two pairs of mounting rails or just one depending on the mounting provisions of your components and their weight.
WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO PUT THE NETWORK CABINET RACK?
The location of your racks is an important decision factor in selecting the proper rack. If it is going in a closet, as if often the case, your concerns are much more basic than if it is going in an open space. If it is a closet, a simple cabinet rack will do as you already gain the protection of the closet itself. You may even decide to go with a smaller wall mounting unit which is very popular for these applications especially if the components are lightweight. If it is going to be in the middle of an office, you will want to focus on ensuring that it looks professional and protects the components from curious people.
DO YOU NEED VENTILATION OR OTHER FEATURES?
There are many ways to ensure that the components you are mounting have the proper level of cooling so they do not overheat. It could be as simple as not needing a front or rear door on the cabinet or ensuring that the sides or tops or doors or all of the above have ventilation holes or slots included. Other questions that might be considered include whether unique cable access is required so that the proper access points are included. Also, what are the access concerns for repair? Often, the ability to easily remove sides or doors can allow quick repairs or adjustments without having to uninstall the components.
DO YOU NEED ACCESSORIES WITH YOUR CABINET RACK?
Does the manufacturer include popular accessories such as shelves, power strips, fans or blowers or cable management hardware? Sometimes items such as these do not install readily in cabinet rack if they are from different producers. Are you going to be moving the units to different locations? Then you want to be sure you can add casters.
All of these five tips must balance into price, read our article on How to Save Money on Your 19' Rack Enclosure. If you have to buy items separately to complete your build are you adding hidden costs? Sometimes racks don't readily compare based on what is included in the price and added costs of acquisition of needed accessories. It also can add to the lead time due to sourcing challenges.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Networking Rack Manufacturer.