Many manufacturers waste time and labor costs hand modifying standard NEMA enclosures to meet their needs. Industrial control panel enclosure supplier, Applied Industrial Controls, Inc., has a Kiesling Performex CNC Router that can quickly and easily provide custom-made solutions to house important devices, controls, and wiring that control your process or system. Our Kiesling CNC Router seamlessly modifies standard NEMA enclosures to have clean-cut openings and tapped holes saving you time and labor costs, especially on stainless steel NEMA 4X enclosures where the metal is more rigid and less easily workable.
Are you struggling to understand heating and cooling calculations? Or to determine the NEMA rating for your system? Our team at AIC can also offer accurate thermal load calculations for your specific application. If you want to save money and get the proper enclosure for your application, get in touch with us today.
What Are NEMA Enclosure Ratings and Why Are They Important?
NEMA is the National Electric Manufacturer Association. NEMA defines enclosures by the type of environment in which they will be used. The standard rating system identifies the durability of enclosures to withstand various environmental conditions such as moisture, wind, dust, hazardous gases, and temperature. When selecting a NEMA enclosure, safety, efficiency, and productivity are improved by considering these standards.
What NEMA Enclosure Material Should I Choose?
Choosing the material for a NEMA enclosure is not as simple as it may appear. Different materials have different characteristics, and some are not suitable for certain applications. For this reason, it is critical to understand an application thoroughly and take all factors into account. It is also very important to have knowledge of the available NEMA enclosure material types such as plastics, fiberglass, carbon steel, and stainless steel. Fortunately, Applied Industrial Controls, Inc. is one of the foremost suppliers for industrial control panel enclosures.
Some things to consider regarding the material for a NEMA enclosure include:
- The required NEMA rating
- The need or hindrance of EMI/RF shielding
- The need or hindrance to transmit radio frequency signals (wireless antenna)
- The requirement for cut-outs and tapped holes on the enclosure
- The need for impact resistance
- The environment that the enclosure will be installed in
- The overall appearance of the enclosure
- The heating and cooling loads of the components
- The physical dimensions and layout of the components
Working together with our team of experts at AIC will help you understand enclosure material selection. We can help you decide which material makes the most sense for your application.
How Should I Size an Air Conditioner or Heater for a NEMA Enclosure?
When sizing an air conditioner or heater for a NEMA enclosure, the first and most important step is to calculate the total heat load present within the electrical enclosure. This step is critical and will require referencing the manufacturer's catalogs and IOM manuals to confirm power losses for each device within the enclosure. When calculating total heat load, heat transfer from the environment to the NEMA enclosure must also be taken into account, so it is important to know the ambient temperature where the NEMA enclosure will be located during operation and enclosure material. This can be significantly impacted by enclosures located outside in direct sunlight. Once the total heat load is verified, the required enclosure temperature can be confirmed. Our team can help calculate heating and cooling capacity requirements while considering the heat dissipation of the NEMA enclosure's size and materials. Depending on environmental seal requirements, fans and filters or air conditioning and heating units may be required. When selecting the heating and cooling equipment, take caution not to go too big or too small. If the unit chosen is too big, it increases cycling and wears on the equipment. If a unit chosen is too small, it results in excessive running times and an inability to control the internal temperature.
Can You Supply Prefabricated NEMA Enclosures for M22 and M30 Pilot Devices?
Prefabricated NEMA enclosures for M22 and M30 pilot devices are common in many different applications. These are canned solutions that will sufficiently work within a system for housing push buttons, indicator lights, and switches. These pilot device stations have many options available, including:
- Ergonomic designs
- Color options
- Material options in plastic and metal
- Multiple entry point locations
- Single or multiple pilot devices
- Environmental seal (NEMA) ratings
At Applied Industrial Controls, Inc., we can take care of all your NEMA enclosure needs. Let us handle your heat load calculations, or we can perform an enclosure energy audit on your existing system (Rittal Audit). Get in touch with us today to get the process started.
Can You Supply Fully Custom NEMA Enclosures?
Applied Industrial Controls, Inc. can provide quality designed, custom control panel NEMA enclosures. No matter how big or small, whether it's a custom shape or custom device opening, we can accommodate your needs. Our custom enclosures are NEMA and UL 508A certified and are constructed from carbon steel, stainless steel, or aluminum.
We can also customize standard enclosures using our Kiesling Perforex CNC router.
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