Roller shutter cupboards for narrow-aisle workshops
A roller shutter cupboard solves one specific problem: a tall storage cupboard with hinged double doors needs the best part of a metre of clear aisle in front of it before it can be opened. Where the bench run, a machine or a walkway sits directly opposite, that clearance does not exist. A vertical roller shutter retracts upwards instead of swinging outwards, so you get full-width access to the cupboard with no door swing at all.
The roller shutter cupboards here are from the Bott Cubio range, at 1050 × 650 × 2000 mm external, with a reinforced steel housing rated to up to 1,500 kg total load capacity and a lockable vertical shutter.
Two internal configurations
The same shell is offered fitted out in different ways, so specify on what you are storing rather than on the outside dimensions:
-
Drawer and louvre panel — 2 adjustable galvanised steel shelves at 100 kg UDL each, 2 × 175 mm drawers at 75 kg UDL on 100% extension slides, and 2 louvre back panels for bin systems. The anthracite grey full-body version is supplied with 2 × 125 mm drawers instead.
-
Shelf model — 3 adjustable galvanised steel shelves at 100 kg UDL each, with an otherwise open interior for bulk storage.
-
Heavy drawer specification — a version fitted with 1 adjustable shelf (100 kg UDL) plus 6 × 175 mm drawers at 75 kg UDL and dual louvre back panels, for workshops that want drawer storage behind a shutter rather than behind doors.
Louvre back panels are worth understanding before you specify: they let you hang bins, hooks and accessories on the rear wall of the cupboard, turning dead space into visible picking storage. If you already run Perfo or louvre panel systems elsewhere in the workshop, the same accessories fit.
Load ratings
Three separate figures apply and it is worth keeping them straight when planning a fit-out:
-
Shelf — 100 kg uniformly distributed load per adjustable galvanised steel shelf.
-
Drawer — 75 kg UDL per drawer, 100% extension on roller-bearing runners with galvanised steel pans.
-
Housing — up to 1,500 kg total.
As with any tall cabinet, load from the bottom up. Drawer blocking is available on Cubio drawer units and is the feature that stops a loaded cabinet being pulled over by opening two drawers at once.
Roller shutter or hinged doors?
Choose a roller shutter when aisle clearance is tight, when the cupboard sits in a traffic route, or when you want the option of leaving the front fully open during a shift and shutting it in one movement at the end. Choose hinged double doors when clearance is not a problem and you want the lowest cost per litre of storage, or when you want to hang accessories on the inside faces of the doors. Both formats are available in the Cubio range — see tool cupboards and security cupboards for the hinged-door equivalents.
Locking, finish and options
The vertical roller shutter is lockable as standard, with master and electronic locking available where several cupboards need to share a key or a site access system. Finishes are industrial powder coat. Internal upgrade options include additional shelves and drawers, hanging rails, divider kits and bin systems; base options are a plinth or a forklift base, and the forklift base is worth specifying at order if the cupboard will ever be relocated with a truck. All Cubio units carry a 10-year extended guarantee.
Related storage
For drawer-only storage in the same modular system, see drawer cabinets. For parts bins behind a door, see bin cupboards. Broader guidance on choosing between steel storage formats is in the metal storage cabinets guide and steel storage cupboards vs lockers. The full range sits under workshop storage and Bott.
