Lateral Filing Cabinets—Find the Best Lateral File Cabinet for Your Office
Lateral file cabinets are defined by their design, which features file drawers that are wider than they are deep. With a lateral file cabinet, the front of the file faces the side of the drawer. Lateral file cabinets allow for robust file storage, so they are favored by businesses and organizations that need to accommodate a lot of files.
Lateral Filing Cabinets—Find the Best Lateral File Cabinet for Your Office
Lateral file cabinets are defined by their design, which features file drawers that are wider than they are deep. With a lateral file cabinet, the front of the file faces the side of the drawer. Lateral file cabinets allow for robust file storage, so they are favored by businesses and organizations that need to accommodate a lot of files.
Common Types of Lateral File Cabinets
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2-drawer lateral file cabinet: 2-drawer lateral filing cabinets are favored for use in spacious workstations or cubicles and home offices that require robust filing storage.
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3-drawer or 4-drawer lateral file cabinet: Lateral file cabinets with 3-drawer and 4-drawer designs are ideal for archives and record keeping because of their high file storage capacity.
Lateral File Cabinet Materials
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Laminate lateral file cabinet: Because laminate is an engineered material, it can be constructed to withstand high levels of impact and consistent wear. There are different grades of laminate, with some more durable than others. High-performance laminate can be one of the best materials for corporate office settings because of its ability to withstand wear and tear.
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Wood lateral file cabinet: Solid wood file cabinets are as beautiful as they are timeless. They also come with a couple of drawbacks: They’re heavy, making them difficult to move, and they aren’t as durable as many performance office furniture materials. Because of this, wood file cabinets are usually best used in a home office setting.
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Engineered wood lateral file cabinet: Engineered wood pairs affordability with durability. If you’re looking for the “solid wood” look but don’t want to pay the price tag that matches it, engineered wood can be an ideal alternative. While they are affordable, most engineered wood file cabinets aren’t as durable as other materials.
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Metal lateral file cabinet: Metal is lightweight, affordable, and durable, making it a popular material for file cabinets.
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Fireproof lateral file cabinet: Fireproof file cabinets are made with specially formulated insulation that is tested to withstand fire damage. Not only will these cabinets protect documents from fire damage, but they are also designed to protect against damage from sprinkler systems.
Other Types of File Storage
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Vertical file cabinets: Vertical file cabinets feature drawers that are deeper than they are wide. Files are stored in a vertical file with the front of the file facing forward. This makes it easy to view file labels at a glance. Some vertical file cabinets can accommodate letter-size files only, while others can fit both legal- and letter-size files. A vertical file cabinet may include other features like a locking drawer or additional office storage drawers.
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Mobile file pedestals: Mobile file pedestals are rolling file cabinets. They typically include at least one file drawer with additional drawers for office supplies. A mobile file pedestal sits on casters, making it easy to move around the office. Mobile pedestals fit under most standard-height desks.
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Side tab file cabinets: Common in healthcare and medical settings, side tab file cabinets are especially great for color-coded file storage. Some side tab file cabinets have doors, while others do not.
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Tambour door file cabinets: Tambour door file cabinets are a type of side tab file cabinet with a door that folds back into the storage unit. Tambour door file cabinets are ideal for tight spaces that can’t accommodate swinging doors.
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Rotary file cabinets: Rotary file cabinets offer a lot of storage in small spaces. A rotary filing cabinet is double-faced, so the unit can be rotated, revealing columns of files on either side. Rotary file cabinets can have as few as 2 shelves or as many as 8 shelves. They are typically configured in a side tab file style.
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Card file cabinets: Card file cabinets function similarly to card catalogs at the library. A card file cabinet fits notecard-size cards. They do not fit letter- or legal-size files.
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Flat file cabinets: Flat file cabinets are used to display and store blueprints and other large-form documents. Flat file cabinets are ideal for designers, real estate developers, and architects.
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Storage islands: Storage islands allow you to use the top of the file cabinet as a work surface. Storage islands usually feature a counter-height work surface. Storage islands can be ideal for maximizing office square footage and creating collaboration space.
File Cabinet Solutions by Document Type
Make sure your file cabinet fits what you’re trying to store. For more information, check out the Complete Guide to Filing Cabinets.
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Letter-size filing cabinets: Any file cabinet (other than a card cabinet) will fit letter-size files. A letter-size document is the size of a standard 8½”x11” piece of computer paper.
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Legal-size document filing cabinets: To accommodate legal files, a file cabinet needs to fit files that measure 8½”x14”. Many, but not all, file cabinets will accommodate legal files, so be sure to check the product description. You’re looking for the words “accommodates legal-size files.” File cabinets that fit legal files also typically accommodate letter-size files.
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Hanging folder file cabinets: Hanging folders can fit into most vertical or lateral file cabinets. Side tab filing cabinets are not designed to accommodate hanging folders.
How to Measure for File Cabinet Delivery
Measure doorways and stairwells to ensure the file cabinet will make it into your office. If you need to navigate slender doorways or narrow stairwells on the way to your room of choice, then you may want to consider getting a vertical file or small file cabinet.
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