See the Stahlin Enclosures Technical Information PDF link on this page for more technical specifics.

Safety: Enclosures may contain the controls or elements of a control system which are crucial to the safety of many people. Control enclosures in large chemical plants, electrical generating facilities, airports, mass transit systems or hospitals can house equipment critical to the well being of numerous individuals. In these and many other applications, rigorous security requirements are designed to protect the public and prevent unauthorized or accidental operation of control equipment.

Monetary Loss: In some applications the monetary value of the equipment in an enclosure may be sufficient to justify additional security costs. In most applications, the economic consequences of unauthorized or accidental operation of a control system will be more significant than the value of the equipment.

Location: If the enclosure will be installed in a fenced area, within a building or in other secure areas, the security requirements will be affected. The selection of latches and hinges can be influenced by the location of adjacent equipment or other enclosures.

Appearance: Enclosure appearance can be influenced by both hinges and latches. Some enclosures are designed with hidden hinges and quarter turn latches to make these features less prominent. These considerations should be evaluated in selecting the hardware to secure an enclosure cover or door. Other concerns unique to the application may exist and the designer is responsible to identify and evaluate any additional considerations. Latches and hinges may be fabricated from a different material than the enclosure. The chemical resistance of the construction materials is included in the Materials Section, in the pdf link available on this page, and must be evaluated by the designer for the specific application.

Hinges: Continuous hinges have the greatest physical strength and provide the best security. Lift off fiberglass hinges have less strength, but offer flexibility such as easy door or cover removal that is not available with continuous hinges. In many cases when the enclosure type is selected, the hinge type is automatically selected because the hinge is an integral part of the enclosure. For some enclosures it is possible to select the hinge type or hingeless options such as cover screws, clamps and latches.

Latches: A more extensive variety of latching options are available to adapt enclosures for specific security requirements. The various latching options and ordering information are provided in the Accessories Section.