Accelerating Enclosure Production: How Rittal’s AX Compact Saves Time

How the AX compact enclosure from Rittal speeds things up.

Meurer‑etechnik is turning to Rittal’s new AX compact enclosure to boost production efficiency. A full day with the enclosure team reveals the differences from the older AE model.

A fresh production day begins at Meurer‑etechnik in Germany’s Westerwald region. In the receiving area, a young employee in a company‑branded black T‑shirt accepts a pallet of eight AX compact enclosures from Rittal.

Production Manager Steven Lauer is already on standby. Within a week, the UL‑compliant enclosures will ship to a special‑purpose machinery manufacturer near Cologne. Lauer can’t wait to see how the AX differs from its predecessor.

“Let’s get started,” he says, assigning the fitting‑out task to three plant electricians. One begins clamping the first enclosure door into the Perforex CNC machining centre, followed by mounting plates.

Progress is swift because the doors and mounting plates arrive already attached, eliminating the need to detach them from the enclosure first. Using the digital twin’s manufacturing data from EPLAN Pro Panel, the machine cuts all required holes in record time. “That part is the most fun,” Lauer remarks from the operator terminal.

“There are hardly any questions, and you can see the results instantly.” He adds, “Now we move to pre‑assembly, configuration and wiring. A fully automated wire‑processing machine has already produced the necessary cable harnesses—again using data from the design engineering team. Meurer‑etechnik is steadily embracing enclosure manufacturing 4.0.”

Lauer points to a rear section of the light‑filled factory and lifts the compact enclosures onto small metal trestles. Each electrician has a trolley with tools and several boxes of electronic components.

The enclosures lie on their backs with doors fitted. Mounting plates sit beside them, to which the electricians attach mounting rails and cable ducts. Contactors, terminals, inverters and other components are then installed.

During configuration, the electricians frequently consult tablets to compare their work with the 3‑D model. Wiring follows, and finally the fully wired mounting plate is inserted into the enclosure.

Lauer, who has been with Meurer‑etechnik for ten years, recalls his apprenticeship days when each hole had to be positioned manually. “The technology has come a long way since then,” he says before asking his colleagues, “So what’s different about the AX?”

The answer: “It feels like there’s more room on the gland plate.” In fact, the AX offers 30 % more space for cable insertion. “That’s a huge advantage,” Lauer notes, as digitalisation continually increases the number of components—and consequently the cables—requiring routing through the gland plate.

He also examines the enclosure’s interior wall. “There used to be challenges with fitting depth stays because options were limited. That’s changed now.” The ability to install rails at various heights makes level design more flexible. Lauer points to a grey box on one trolley, noting only three cable harnesses remain. “When that box looks empty, I know we’re on the finish line.”

No errors appeared during testing, and the enclosures were ready half a day ahead of schedule. “You’re happy when, at the end of the day, there’s no risk of missing the delivery deadline and the quality meets expectations,” Lauer smiles.

For more information on Rittal’s full range, visit www.rittal.co.uk or follow our LinkedIn page at @rittal‑ltd‑uk.