There was a time, not that long ago either, where Rola-cases dominated the whole screw organiser domain. Every tradies van, ute, truck once you opened the door was a sea of orange. However, over the past decade this phenomenon has been rapidly changing, many other systems have made their debut and the most recognisable of them all is the Milwaukee Packout System.
Good organisation systems are an absolute must for all tradies from Sparkies to Plumbers, Builders to Handymen. Every tradie knows if they want to survive, grow and improve their efficiency they have to carry all their essentials with them to the job. That is where systems like the Rola-Case/Rola-Rack set ups or the Milwaukee Packout organisers shine. There are of course a bunch of other systems out there as well, each power tool brand has now brought out their own system similar to Packouts. For now, however we are focusing on the big two, Rola-Case vs Packout.
At Ablefix we understand busy tradies, our customers range from one-van operations up to large contracting companies with 20+ vans, trucks or utes on the road. Our best way of providing true value to our customers, aside from just ensuring the best possible pricing for each item, is our ready-made fasteners & accessories packages which we supply in both Packouts and Rola-cases – see below:
Let’s do a quick delve into these two very different organiser systems so you can understand which system works best for you.
Rola-Case, the only Australian made option out there. Rugged, smart, flexible, ideal for any tradie. Let’s run over the pro’s and cons:
Pro’s:
- Australian made
- Exceptionally rugged, last nearly forever thanks to the sturdy build and design
- Evolved latches that ensure the case doesn’t pop open in transit
- Dividers that can be taken in and out so that you can customise the compartment sizes to fit your screws/anchors
- More compartments per case compared with Packouts, fit a bigger range of fixings per case
- Best of all, the Rola-Rack & Qcase storage drawer cabinet system that allows you to securely store all your cases safely in your van and pull out when you get to the site
Cons:
- Rola-cases don’t adapt to your other tool boxes like Packouts do
- When you get to site you have to carry each individual case onto site where Packout offers a superior trolley system
- Smaller compartments compared with the standard Packout screw organizer, means you can’t fit as many of one screw size which can be annoying if you use a small range but a lot of one particular screw
- Great system but has barely changed over the last decade to adapt to the current tradie requirements
Apart from that, Rola-cases are an exceptional product still and are still highly popular however, they are rapidly losing ground to the mighty red, Milwaukee Packout system. Let’s take a look into why this is happening:
Packout pro’s & cons:
Pro’s:
- Superior adaptability. All your power tools, hand tools and screw boxes can all lock together for transit or for carrying on to site
- Strong construction
- Bucket individual bucket style compartments mean you can shift compartments anywhere you want throughout the case without having to take the screws out first, or you can pull each screw bucket out to top up or have beside you while you work
- Shift compartments wherever you like around the case whereas Rola-cases are a little more limited due to only letting you remove or move some dividers not all
- Bigger compartments, ideal for new home rough-in trades like Electricians, Plumbers, Air-Conditioners who go don’t need a massive range of screws but what they do need they need a lot of, don’t want to have to be constantly topping up the case during the job
- Better range of screw box options from the slimline to the standard then the deep, Rola-case don’t have a slimline and their deep has very few compartments
- Better tool storage box options where Rola-case empty cases aren’t big enough to fit power tools
- Superior site set up solutions, with Packout you can basically set up your workshop on site!
- Constantly updating, bringing out more brilliant options to optimise your storage
Cons:
- Not Australian made
- When compared to the Rola-Rack/Qcase drawer cabinet system Packouts aren’t as good vehicle set up. Yes you can clip all your cases together for transit but when you get to site and only need to get one case out you have to unclip everything whereas the Rola-case set up lets you simply pull out a drawer and grab the case you want
- Less dividers per case, this can be frustrating, means you need almost twice as many cases compared to the Rola-case
So what’s the verdict, is Milwaukee Packout the best system for you or is it Rola-case? What do we recommend? See below:
Truly, you can’t go wrong with either set up, in fact many companies run both systems or other brands altogether. We feel that both the Rola-Case system and the Packout range have a solid future, it comes down to the type of work you do as to which system is going to work the best. For you, it probably comes down to personal preference at the end of the day so don’t let us get in the way of the track you want to go down!
- We recommend the Packout system for new home rough-in contractors like Electricians, Plumbers, Air-Conditioners, Alarm & CCTV, Audio Visual installers because you can get a superior qty of each critical screw/anchor that you pump through heaps of per job
- Rola-case we find works better for maintenance contractors where every job they go to is very different from the last. This means that while they don’t need a large amount of any one fixing, they need a large range of options. Rola-case helps them do this a lot better. They can basically get whatever they need for any job to fit into 1 or 2 cases whereas with the Packout system they would need several cases to fit the same range
That said, Milwaukee Packout is now the most popular storage system for tradies by an ever widening margin. Rola-case systems while being an exceptionally good quality product and set-up, they have virtually stopped evolving to the evolving needs of Aussie tradies which leaves them at risk of being replaced eventually by the likes of Packout.
Talk to us today about your particular needs, our team is always on call ready to guide you to your best solution!
