7 Essential Cabinet Design Considerations for Protecting 19” Electronics

Depending on the application, choosing
the right cabinet might be a challenge.
Outside the traditional 19”data
communications and
telecommunications market, cabinets
may be exposed to extreme heat, high
dust/contaminants, clean room/
laboratories, Radio-Frequency/
Electromagnetic interference (RFI/EMI)
and high shock and vibration
requirements. To help choose a specific
19” electronics cabinet solution this
article introduces seven essential design
considerations.
ONE – Design Standards
Depending on your requirements different
design standards can apply. Those are
defined and developed by standards
committees, government agencies, and
regulators. Standards result from
technical agreements related to design
specifications and requirements that need
to be fulfilled by a product or service.
Some key design standards associated
with electronics cabinets include the
following:
IEC
International Electrotechnical Commission
(IEC) develops International standards for
all electrical, electronic and related
technologies. Adoption is voluntary,
although they are often referenced in
national laws or regulations worldwide.
IEC 60297 (Mechanical structures for
electronic equipment – Dimensions of
mechanical structures of the 482,6 mm
(19 in) series) standard provides crucial
information for designing 19” cabinets –
IEC 60297; IEC 60297-3-100 (19 inch

difficult because some tests may be
conducted to ensure optimal results,
such as mounting the heaviest
equipment at the bottom of the cabinet,
but it may not correspond to the layout
for the final application.
Working with heavy loads can also
present other issues. Depending on the
application, some cabinet designs may
require dynamic protection, which in
turn, necessitates a more robust design
depending on the load.
FOUR – Thermal Management
and Cooling
Thermal management is an important
design consideration for any electrical or
electronics enclosure. Thermal overload
can be a common reason for operating
failures in electronic devices, and the
risk increases for equipment mounted
into cabinets as power density of today’s
electronics increases, and more heat is
generated. Heat dissipation calculations
are measured in ΔT (Delta T), which is
defined as the temperature difference
between the intake air and exhaust air,
or the amount of heat that is carried
away by the stream of air exiting the
heat load. A greater temperature
difference signifies more heat being
removed.
Cabinets designed for universal
applications require broad thermal
management compatibility and often
need to meet more stringent
performance demands than standard
communications cabinets. There are
numerous thermal management and
cooling options that may be deployed in
cabinets – from high perforation—which
is referred to as a passive option—to fan
trays, heat exchangers and air
conditioners—which are considered
active options.

A greater
temperature
difference signifies
more heat being
removed.

CONCLUSION
When designing 19” electronics
enclosures outside of traditional data
and telecommunications applications,
it is critical to partner with a provider
who has a demonstrated history of
working within stringent global design
standards, and is able to work with you
to provide the right cabinet solution that
meets the performance requirements of
the entire system. Schroff, a division of
Pentair Technical Solutions, is a global
leader in electronics protection, and
offers high-quality electronic packaging
design and fabrication including
complete systems,

individual
packaging solutions
and demanding
customized solutions.