Walk round almost any manufacturing facility, water treatment plant, or food processing site, and you may spot rows of steel cabinets, writes Emma Westwood, Rittal’s UK product management lead. These seemingly innocuous metal boxes safeguard some of the most critical equipment on the site.
Industrial enclosures, as they’re more correctly known, are sophisticated control cabinets that house advanced automation systems to keep production lines moving and data flowing, while maintaining the highest quality and safety standards.
They are specifically engineered to provide optimum operating conditions for delicate electrical circuitry and to protect users from the electrical equipment within.
Over the last sixty years these humble cabinets have undergone a considerable transformation, driven by evolving market demands and technological advances, as well as a growing recognition that what happens inside has a direct bearing on the productivity, efficiency and, increasingly, sustainability rating of a facility.
In the beginning…
In the 1950s and early 1960s, sourcing an industrial enclosure was pretty straightforward, albeit quite slow.
When a panel builder needed a casing for their electrical equipment, they went to a local manufacturer and had one made to order. There was little about them which was bespoke apart from the sizing, and they could take weeks to manufacture.
The breakthrough came in 1961, when a German entrepreneur called Rudolf Loh purchased an old weaving mill to launch an ‘Enclosures off-the-shelf, immediately’ concept, and introduced the concept of standardisation to the enclosure market.
His fledgling company, Rittal, conceived and developed a simple idea which, over the years, would have huge ramifications.
Rather than waiting for their custom build cabinet, panel builders could now select from a range of pre-engineered sizes. Even if the enclosure was slightly larger than strictly required, it was more than up to the job, and it saved a lot of time. Speed and cost combined to make standardisation extremely popular, and the introduction of a systematic, scalable range, changed the market dynamics forever.
Modularisation
The next large step change in control cabinet design came in the early 1970s with the introduction of the modular enclosure. Up until then, when a cabinet had reached capacity in terms of the equipment it housed, the only option was to install another one alongside it; a fairly inelegant solution and one which added unnecessary complications in terms of system integration.
The new modular approach replaced solid metal exteriors with engineered frames. Sections could be bolted together to create an enclosure
of virtually any size, clad with side panels once the configuration was finalised.
To expand the system, engineers simply removed a side panel, added another frame section for the new equipment, and then replaced the panel at the end. This was a scalable solution that reflected the growing understanding of how industrial systems were starting to develop and evolve.
Rittal’s TS range became an industry benchmark for around two decades, valued for its strength, flexibility, and the breadth of accessories it could accommodate. It wasn’t until 2018 that a further fundamental rethink produced its new VX enclosure. The VX was developed with the input of consultants from outside the industry who spent years closely observing panel builders and manufacturers to understand how they used the TS system in order to provide a wholly fresh perspective on their needs.
The result was a universal frame system in which the punching pattern was identical on every part of its structure. Where previous systems required a range of different accessories depending on its orientation or location within the enclosure, the VX accepted the same component anywhere.
It meant that panel builders managing multiple projects now had fewer part numbers to track and reduced stock holdings. They also spent less time on fitting and were able to reduce the manufacturing cost of each enclosure.
The digitalisation of the value chain
In recent years, perhaps the most significant development has not been to the physical structure of the enclosure but in terms of how it is designed, specified and built.
In common with most of the industrialised world, the panel building industry is in the middle of the digital revolution and its implications are running right through the value chain.
Design software such as Eplan now allows the panel building engineers to map out a panel in detail before any components are ordered or holes are drilled, and automate the machining process. Engineers send their digital designs to the shopfloor where CNC machining and laser cutting equipment (what Rittal terms its RAS (Rittal Automation Systems) platform) manage most of the manufacturing process entirely autonomously. It means that cutouts and back plate modifications that would have taken skilled technicians days to complete by hand can now be executed by machine in a fraction of the time, freeing up a company’s experienced, skilled workforce for the more intricate work of component fitting and wiring.
One of the driving forces behind digitalisation, particularly in recent years, has been the scarcity of skilled labour in the sector. The UK’s traditional panel building workforce is ageing and unfortunately recruitment has not been able to keep up with demand. Those companies that invest in design software and automation can support any shortfall in their resourcing needs, while boosting business capacity, productivity and employee job satisfaction.
What’s more, the development of free online configurator tools means that businesses can now build digital twins of their enclosures before they buy. This allows engineers to check the fit of components and plan modifications ahead of placing an order. The design files can then be downloaded directly to the machining equipment.
Meanwhile, end users can use QR codes placed on enclosure components to get rapid access to useful information, particularly around ordering spare parts, servicing, and maintenance.
Climate control & award winning hybrid technology
One of the most common pressures placed on system control components is thermal stress, the level of which will depend on the load placed on the machine.
The reliability and performance of devices such as PLCs, VSDs and transformers, which are indispensable for production line processes, are affected by excess heat which can lead to expensive, unplanned production line stoppages.
The solution to alleviate this stress is climate control technology which cools the components and avoids major temperature fluctuations within the enclosure. However, cooling equipment consumes a significant amount of energy, which is a concern at a time when production margins have been squeezed by mounting energy prices as well as rising labour and supply chain costs.
In response, Rittal launched its award-winning Blue e+ system, which not only uses state-of-the-art technologies to deliver industry-leading climate control, but is also far more energy efficient than existing cooling solutions.
Key to its efficiency is Rittal’s innovative patented hybrid system which uses a clever combination of a compressor cooling device and a heat pipe to take maximum advantage of passive cooling. As a result, the Blue e+ units use up to 75% less electricity than conventional cooling units, which is a quantum leap forward for cooling systems, and a major incentive for manufacturers seeking to mitigate for fluctuating energy prices.
In fact, sustainability is helping to reshape huge swathes of our operations. For example, legislation is now requiring the industry to move away from using fluorinated carbon F-gas refrigerants. Instead, the focus has shifted to employing alternatives such as R1234YF – a change which Rittal has already universally adopted because of its significantly lower Global Warming Potential.
In recent years, we have also invested heavily in areas such as supply chain transparency, alongside energy efficiency measures and advanced CO2 emissions monitoring.
In 2026, we were awarded the prestigious Gold Medal rating from EcoVadis, placing us in the top 5% of companies worldwide for sustainability performance.
The road ahead
Industrial enclosures have come a long way from the fabricated metal boxes of sixty years ago. They are now the physical infrastructure of a digital, automated and increasingly sustainable manufacturing ecosystem.
The panel builders who specify, build and maintain them are at the centre of that transformation and the decisions they make about design software, automation investment and product selection will shape how competitive and resilient their businesses are in the years ahead.
The continued scarcity of skilled labour, and pressures on productivity and efficiency, are likely to mean that digitalisation and automation extend further into the sector over the next few years, as we transition into the next manufacturing era.
Learn more: https://www.rittal.com/uk-en/
For more Enclosures news: Enclosure Solutions Archives – Design Solutions
