An Introduction to Essential Locker Features

What is a Locker?

Lockers are a storage product that are commonly used in schools, gyms, hospitals, pools, and work environments. While the concept of a locker is relatively simple (they are a box that locks) there is some terminology that is handy to know and can cause confusion for locker buyers. These essential locker features include:

• Tiers / Doors
• Banking / Ganging
• Ventilation
• Three Point Locking vs Single Point Locking
• Door Stiffeners
• Sloping Tops

We’re going to touch on some of the frequently used jargon to hopefully clear things up for you.

The way that I describe the terms are direct from Australian manufacturers who have been in business for more than 50 years. They pretty much invented the way these terms are used!

Tiers / Doors

Tiers refers to the quantity of doors, vertically, on a single locker unit or frame. It is also referred to as the doors of a locker. For example a single tier locker is 1 door on 1 frame. An 8 tier locker is 8 doors on 1 frame. Sometimes customers request, for example, a “…6 door locker, but 2 wide”. This would actually be two 3 tier lockers, banked together. If you want to learn more about the standard sizes for Australian lockers, check out our article here about Australian Locker Sizes.

Banking or Ganging

Banking, also referred to as ganging, is the practise of joining multiple locker frames together to create a single unit. It can usually only be done in groups of 2 or 3 during manufacturing, with the remainder being done on site. Three lockers banked together can be as wide as 1140mm and is really the largest size you want to be delivering as a single, assembled unit. Banking is done to improve the safety of the lockers once placed. It also has the intrinsic benefit of helping to reduce delivery costs. It is much faster for a delivery crew to place one larger unit than three smaller units. If you want to order lockers that are banked, you need to measure the length of where the lockers will be going.

Let’s say you have space for 10 locker units in a row. You could order them as 2 banks of 3 lockers (6 units) and 2 banks of 2 lockers (4 units), equally 10 units total.

Ventilation

There are two forms of ventilation in lockers: louvres and perforations.

Louvres

These are the traditional style of locker ventilation you may be familiar with. As standard they are on the door, however some lockers are supplied with ventilation positioned on the rear for increased air flow. Louvres have one key benefit over perforations and that is protection from dust. However, this is a small concern and many prefer the more aesthetic choice of perforations.

Perforations

This type of ventilation is much more versatile as it does not create a bump in the locker surface, it is simply a cutout. It is generally considered the better looking option and can be supplied in a variety of squares, circles or even fancy shapes depending on the manufacturer.

Three Point Locking / Single Point Locking

Three point locking or single point locking refers to the way the locking mechanism connects with the body of the locker when the lock is engaged. A three point lock has two rods that go into the top and bottom of the door, as well as the main cam that engages directly behind the lock. This helps prevent intruders from pulling the corners of the door out. It’s primarily used in single door lockers, however some two door lockers also have this feature.

Single point locks however only engage at one point which is directly behind the lock mechanism. This is the most often used lock. Doors that use this tend to be too small to require the benefits of three point locking.

Internal Door Stiffener

On larger doors and heavy duty lockers, a U-channel of steel is fixed to the inside of the door. This serves two functions. Firstly, it minimises door flex. Large sheets of steel wobble, and single door lockers in particular have doors that are nearly 1800mm long. Secondly, it improves security by making the door harder to twist if someone sticks a screwdriver into the side of the door.

Sloping Tops

Lockers are generally supplied with flat tops, however sloping tops can be installed to eliminate overhead storage. They are usually supplied at 30 or 45 degrees and are a favoured addition to school lockers.

Hopefully you have found this introduction to lockers helpful. If you need help with choosing lockers for your next project, big or small, get in touch with Hi Tech Lockers. Be sure to like, comment and share if you found this interesting!