At what gross weight does a Heavy-Duty Protective Case need a forklift?

Answer: Around 50 kg. Two people can lift that on flat ground, but ramps and tailgates add force, so specify pockets earlier than the arithmetic suggests.

How much smaller should the interior be than the outside?

Answer: 40 to 60 mm per side is normal, from wall, rib and edge thickness.

Are three stack layers enough?

Answer: Check storage height and bearing area, not the count alone. Beyond six months of storage, design at two layers.

Can an IP67 case stay outdoors?

Answer: Short term yes, long term no. UV chalks the shell and hardens the gasket, so shade it and keep it 100 mm off the ground.

Can lifting points be added later?

Answer: Not advised. Every drilled hole breaks the seal and the load path, and becomes a water entry point.

How to Choose a Heavy-Duty Protective Case: 5 Criteria

Quick answer: Run five checks in order. Gross weight sets the handling method, the equipment envelope sets interior size, drop height and stack layers set the structure, transport climate sets the sealing, and lifting points set the interfaces. Each check ends in a number you can put into a quotation.

Five Criteria for a Heavy-Duty Protective Case
Matching Weight to Handling Method
Checking Internal Dimensions and Load Fit
Impact Resistance and Stacking
Sealing, Temperature and Lifting Interfaces
FAQ

1. Five Criteria for a Heavy-Duty Protective Case

Choosing a case is a sequence of exclusions, not a ranking. If the handling method is still open, nobody can say whether the base needs fork pockets or a steel backing plate behind the castors.

Check	Number to obtain
Weight and handling	Gross weight, carry distance, threshold height
Interior and load	Usable interior, insert thickness, load factor
Impact and stacking	Drop height and attitude, layers, duration
Sealing and climate	Ingress rating, temperature swing, dew point
Lifting and transport	Point position, fork pocket height, strap slots

The checks constrain each other. One more stack layer thickens the corners and can push a Heavy-Duty Protective Case onto a forklift; a higher ingress rating stiffens the gasket, so crews stop latching the lid on short moves.

2. Matching Weight to Handling Method

Gross weight, not empty weight: shell, insert, fittings, equipment, plus straps and desiccant. A Heavy-Duty Protective Case with a 1200 by 800 by 600 mm interior weighs 38 kg empty; with a 15 kg EVA insert and 45 kg of kit it reaches 98 kg.

Heavy-Duty Protective Case: pale grey case open on a beige backdrop, two white latches, folding handle and round pressure valve

One person carries 20 to 25 kg all day, two people about 50 kg, and beyond that the case needs fork pockets or lifting points. Long cases twist when lifted by two people, and the handle bosses loosen first.

Gross weight	Handling method
Up to 25 kg	One-person carry handle
25 to 60 kg	Two-person lift, four castors
60 to 120 kg	Fork pockets, short castor moves
Above 120 kg	Four lifting points on a pallet

Handles are rated at 1.5 times gross weight, because one side takes the load first off a tailgate. A 100 mm castor clears a 5 mm threshold and no more, so the wheel housing needs a metal plate under it.

3. Checking Internal Dimensions and Load Fit

Work back from the outside: wall thickness, rib height, insert depth, lid recess. A 1200 mm outside length often leaves 1120 mm inside, and a 30 mm insert then cuts usable length to 1060 mm.

Hold the load factor between 60 and 75 percent. Below that the kit shifts and the insert takes the whole drop; above it, crews cut foam away to reach an item and the protection is gone. Measure the envelope in three axes, handles and connectors included, and keep the centre of gravity under 40 percent of interior height.

4. Impact Resistance and Stacking

Drop five faces, three edges and one corner; the corner is the hardest because the energy lands on a few square centimetres. Test at 1.2 m at room temperature and 0.9 m at minus 30 °C, where a dent in a Heavy-Duty Protective Case becomes a crack.

Heavy-Duty Protective Case: closed off-white case on a workshop bench, grey drawer cabinet open behind

Three cases at 98 kg put about 196 kg on the bottom one, and a 1.5 factor covers offset loads. Plastic creeps, so the layer limit belongs on a quarterly check rather than a drawing note. On a 1200 by 1000 mm pallet, both corners must sit on the stringers; over 50 mm of overhang and the feet punch through the base.

5. Sealing, Temperature and Lifting Interfaces

IP67 is one metre of water for thirty minutes, while field exposure is rain, spray and washdown. The seal on a Heavy-Duty Protective Case fails at the parting line and the pressure valve, where a film of grit holds it open.

A swing from 30 °C to minus 10 °C walks the dew point to the wall; above a 40 °C swing, allow 200 g of desiccant per cubic metre. Lifting interfaces are fixed at the drawing stage: four points on corner blocks, slings within 45 degrees, 120 mm fork pockets, M8 eye bolts at 15 N·m.

Conclusion

Weight before handling, load before interior size, duty before structure, climate before sealing, lifting last. Put gross weight, usable interior, drop height and stack duration into the enquiry, and the replies become comparable. Run in sequence, the five checks keep a Heavy-Duty Protective Case inside its design envelope.

This article discusses only the container (case body) side of specifications and design intent, and does not cover any handling, loading or use of the contents.