Custom Equipment Enclosures: Uses, Materials, Benefits
Shops tend to spend a lot of time selecting their machinery, but almost no time considering how their placement may affect the space around them. Equipment can affect how safe an area is, how clean it is, and also how well the machine itself works. Custom equipment enclosures give you control over all the above. In this article, we’ll cover what they are, what industries they’re used in, some of their materials, potential features, and more.
What Are Custom Equipment Enclosures?
Not every machine can sit out in the open. Some are loud, and some throw off dust or heat. Others just aren’t safe to be around without a barrier in place. If you’ve got any of the above issues, custom equipment enclosures can help.
So what are they? They aren’t prefab boxes or electrical cabinets. Instead, they’re built around the shape, function, and footprint of your actual equipment.
If you’ve got a CNC machine that needs airflow on one side, access on another, and visibility through a windowed panel, then standard-built options probably won’t cut it.
Shops often turn to custom builds when they run into limits with off-the-shelf enclosures. Sometimes it’s the size. Other times it’s the noise. In a lot of cases, it’s just about making sure people can work near the machine without being exposed to moving parts, sharp edges, or high temperatures. Safety rules don’t leave a lot of room for guesswork.
It’s also not just about protection, though. Operators still need to reach controls, swap parts, or run material through. A custom enclosure can give them that access without removing the barrier that keeps the environment safe and clean.
What’s more, no two setups are exactly alike. One shop might need forklift access. Another might want to isolate a laser process behind sound-dampening panels.
A custom enclosure works with your machine, rather than the other way around.
Industries That Use Custom Equipment Enclosures
There’s no single place these enclosures show up, but some common industries where they’re used are:
- Manufacturing: A lathe running near a walkway is not ideal. The same goes for open CNCs throwing coolant. Some shops choose to build around the whole machine, others just close off the worst of it.
- Material Handling: Conveyor systems can get crowded, and an equipment enclosure can keep things much safer.
- Research and Development: Some labs need clean air, and others need the noise blocked out. Either way, sensitive equipment usually can’t just sit out in the open.
- Aerospace and Defense: In these industries, people are often working within tight spaces, and the gear/equipment is not cheap. Permanent walls aren’t always practical, so modular enclosures are often the next best thing.
- Automotive and Robotics: Moving parts, high-speed cycles, and a lot of human traffic. Enclosures here aren’t optional but part of how the line works without constant stoppages.
Materials and Construction Options
A custom enclosure is built to your exact use. And this also means that the material and construction options you choose can affect how it performs, how long it lasts, and how easy it is to work with. Here’s are some of the most common material/construction options:
- Steel or Aluminum Frames: These form the base structure. Aluminum’s lighter; steel’s more rigid. Some places use both.
- Powder-Coated Panels: Not just for looks. The coating helps prevent rust and holds up under regular cleaning or fluid splash.
- Polycarbonate Windows: If operators need to see inside the enclosure while the machine’s running, this is usually the material that gets used.
- Acoustic Panels: To reduce distracting sounds. Some setups are loud enough that this isn’t optional.
- Doors: Placed where needed, depending on how much room you’ve got around the machine and how people need to get in and out. There are both sliding door and hinged options.
- Ventilation Hardware: Fans, duct ports, maybe a silencer if the airflow gets noisy.
- Lighting: Most enclosures have LED strips inside, especially if there’s any maintenance or setup work that happens with the doors closed.
Customization Capabilities
Some machines are compact and simple. Others sprawl across half the floor. Shops figure things out based on their layout, not a standard template. Here are a few aspects of equipment enclosures that can be customized:
- Size/Fit: Built to match your machine’s footprint, including height, access points, and service areas.
- Noise Ratings: Panels with the right thickness and density to meet your target decibel levels.
- Pass-Throughs: Slots or ports for material loading, sensors, robot arms, or tool changers.
- Color and Branding: Match your facility, identify zones, or apply safety signage.
- Mobility Options: Caster wheels, lift eyes, or forklift bases for flexible deployment.
- Interior Features: Shelving, mounts, or hooks for maintenance tools or components.
With the right design, your enclosure can support both operations and safety, without getting in the way of production.
Benefits of Custom Equipment Enclosures
There’s more to equipment enclosures than simply adding covering over a machine. The right enclosure can change how an environment feels and functions. Here are some of their top benefits:
- Worker Protection: Cuts down exposure to heat or noise, and keeps people away from fast-moving parts.
- Cleaner Space: Helps keep dust or coolant from ending up on the floor, or drifting into other working areas.
- Compliance: In many cases, enclosures help meet safety rules set by OSHA and other regulatory bodies.
- Longevity: When machines are boxed in properly, they tend to stay cleaner, take fewer hits, and therefore last longer.
- Better Organization: You usually see less clutter around enclosed machines.
The Bottom Line
If a machine makes too much noise, throws dust, or sits where it shouldn’t, it probably needs to be enclosed. Some shops wait too long to deal with it. Others fix it before it becomes a problem. In either case, a custom enclosure gives them a way to do it right.
Interested in setting up shelters for your machinery? Reach out to the experts at MachineEnclosure.com to get a quote on new enclosures today.
FAQs About Custom Equipment Enclosures
1. What kinds of machines can be enclosed?
Almost anything can be enclosed. We’ve built enclosures for CNCs, CMMs, pumps, and much more.
2. Can the enclosure be moved later?
Yes, it can. All our enclosures are modular, which means they can be disassembled and reassembled at a new location, or even to fit a new layout.
3. Are these enclosures good for noise reduction?
They can be. If sound is a concern, we’ll include acoustic panels and design it to help lower decibel levels where needed.
