Using drawer file cabinets or vertical file cabinets can be an important factor that an individual needs to consider if they work from home, or in an office. These cabinets are essential because they allow for the effective organization of workspace(s).
Both have their own advantages, depending on your workspace and on how you like to organize things. This article will go through the differences between drawer file cabinet vs. vertical file cabinet in order to enable you to choose what fits your needs.
Now, let’s take a look at how these cabinets compare with regard to space efficiency, usability, and durability.
Understanding the Basics: What are Drawer and Vertical File Cabinets?
A drawer file cabinet has roomy drawers (usually two) that can accommodate files and other things like office supplies. They pull out wide, so you are able to see everything inside and reach everything from these drawers. On the other hand, a vertical file cabinet is more space-conscious but taller, great for the smaller office with a smaller footprint but in need of storing a lot of files. These are sometimes called a 4 drawer file cabinet, as they usually have four drawers in them.
Space Efficiency and Placement
In regard to saving space in the office, the design of the file cabinet is quite important. The best for small spaces is a vertical file cabinet, since they make use of much of the vertical space and not much of the horizontal space. This simply means they leave more floor space free for other uses.
Drawer file cabinets take up more space compared to a vertical 4 drawer file cabinet, as the former requires more floor space to. Drawer file cabinets are considered suitable for an office that is spacious, while a vertical file cabinet is more suitable for a not so large office.
Which Cabinet Offers Better Organization?
If you are one for simplicity in organizing things, drawer file cabinets should be more your thing. Drawer file cabinets make files easy to manage. They are typically easier to manage because it is possible to pull them out and see everything at the same time—most helpful if you need to have frequent access to your files.
A vertical 4 drawer file cabinet is a filing cabinet that is made to maximize storage space and to file records that are not accessed regularly. The files within a vertical cabinet are stacked on top of each other, and without proper labels, it may be very hard to access what you need at a moment’s notice.
Strength and Durability
Both file cabinets are normally constructed to be durable, but the strength can depend on what the material of manufacture is and how well the cabinet is maintained. Filing cabinets that have more drawers are often heavier, so they need more maintenance for the drawers to work properly. In addition, while a vertical 4 drawer file cabinet may be taller, it is also easily prone to tripping down, especially if not set up properly. This may cause damage(s) if this is allowed to happen often.
Conclusion
Deciding to go for a drawer or vertical file cabinet should be based on the available space in the office, on your way of organizing, and on how often you work with files. Take your own situation into account and the amount of space you have in order to best judge what will work for your workspace.
Apart from space considerations, with the simple comparisons above, you should have easily learned the functional differences between these two popular types of file cabinets, to assist you make better decisions for your office environment.
