Ask Rackmount Ranger: Difference Between WRK-SA and WRK?
What is the difference between the WRK-SA series and the regular WRK? Are they compatible?
The WRK-SA is a Stand Alone cabinet (hence the SA). The defining property of a stand alone cabinet is that the side panels cannot be removed. In the case of the WRK-SA, the side panels are welded on.
In contrast, the regular WRK series is a “gangable�? cabinet. Gangable cabinets can be connected to adjacent cabinets which are open internally. There are no panels or dividers separating the individual cabinets in a row. This is advantageous for running cables or power between the cabinets. The WRK (without side panels) frame is the same width as the WRK-SA cabinet. However, when the locking removable side panels are added to the frame, the width increases by 1.5 inches.
The two types of frames are not compatible for most applications. There are no knock-outs in the sides of the WRK-SA cabinet, so passing cables or power to adjacent cabinets cannot be performed without exiting one cabinet and re-entering the adjacent one.
The single application where they might work together is if the intent is to have individual cabinets in a row, without any communication between cabinets. This might be similar to a co-location application. However, to ensure the cabinets all have side panels on them, there would need to be two WRK frames on the ends, which would share a set of side panels. The distribution of cabinets would be that every even numbered cabinet would be a WRK-SA (since the first cabinet, counting from either end, would be a WRK). This configuration is workable, but the cabinets still cannot be joined together unless the owner wanted to drill through the sides of the WRK-SA cabinets.
