Enclosures
Smart ways to purchase electronic enclosures E
very PCB needs an enclosure. Even those left open to the world require some form of mounting solution. Much of the enclosures debate inevitably focuses on design and technology – but it’s all too easy to forget the purchasing challenges involved too and how much they can affect the final outcome. Congratulations if you’ve prioritised
‘source enclosure’ at the beginning of your project. So many electronics designers put the PCB first. It’s an understandable mistake because the circuitry is the beating heart of the product. It’s what makes the technological magic happen. But Robert Cox, marketing director at OKW Enclosures Ltd, says: “It’s important to think ‘enclosure first’ because it has such a big impact on component layout. That means addressing some vital purchasing decisions early on. Will you be manufacturing the enclosure in-house? This will be an option for big OEM manufacturers who occupy prominent positions in their chosen markets. But just because you can, should you? Bringing in an enclosures specialist doesn’t just reduce the headaches involved with creating a case from scratch. It also opens you up to a whole new world of thinking. “A good enclosures partner will offer
refreshing ideas and leading edge innovation that can solve problems you may not have discovered until much later in the project.”
Besides, you may well be an engineering company happy to fold and machine your own sheet metal cases – but moulding a plastic enclosure involves significant upfront tooling costs. And as for diecasting aluminium, that’s a much larger undertaking. Not everyone has their own handy foundry on-site. So taking the other route – purchasing a
standard enclosure customised to your precise specifications – is for most SME
OKW’s latest SMART-TERMINAL extruded enclosures can be supplied fully customised - ready for assembly of the electronics
OEM electronics companies the smartest decision. OKW manufactures a huge range of plastic enclosures for handheld, desktop and wall mounted applications – plus metal cases (under its METCASE brand) for 19” rack mounted electronics and desktop instrumentation.
OKW is also the UK importer of ROLEC
enclosures which manufactures heavy duty industrial electronic enclosures from aluminium (diecast), stainless steel, GRP, Luran and ABS.
Both OKW and ROLEC offer a full range of customising services – meaning that each is capable of being your complete enclosures partner from start to finish. They do so because this is another
key purchasing criterion: smart buyers always choose a single-source supplier. They know there’s no point in stringing together a chain of small suppliers, each of whom tackles their part of the project piecemeal. Robert Cox says: “It’s so much easier to use one specialist supplier who can provide all the machining, finishing, special materials, EMC shielding and so on – and is solely accountable for delivering your customised enclosures perfectly finished. “You also need to be sure they can
source components such as cable glands and interfaces – and provide more sophisticated elements such as membrane keypads. Will they carry out installation and assembly? Can you simply send them
your PCBs and outsource the entire manufacturing process to them?” Complete outsourcing of your manufacturing can be advantageous if the product in question is non-core. It can also be tempting from a cost reduction point of view. You can offshore production to the Far East or other low cost manufacturing centres. But this can be a double-edged sword. Using suppliers from emerging economies raises questions about quality consistency and ability to meet delivery deadlines. There’s also the issue of intellectual property. Some jurisdictions can play fast and loose with IP – or be very selective about how they enforce the rules. Either way, your product may end up being copied. Your only recourse would be litigation – which is never easy, never cheap and never fun – especially when international borders are involved. Here’s the reality. Venturing to the other side of the world – either for enclosure supply or for full assembly – makes sense only if you’re talking about volumes of at least 1,000 units. And only then if you use a supplier with a long and exemplary track record. For small and medium sized manufacturers it pays to stick with a trusted supplier closer to home. Whoever you choose, you’ll also need
to ensure their packaging is up to scratch – and that they can deliver your enclosures without damaging your enclosures’ packaging. You’ll need each enclosure to be packaged individually and each box to arrive in pristine condition. That’s because you’re going to put your company branding on them and reuse them as the containers for shipping out your finished products.
www.okw.co.uk www.metcase.co.uk www.rolec-enclosures.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
