Pre-assembly of casework components in shipping container

Abstract

A system and method for pre-assembly of interior casework components for a wall space of a dwelling unit employs a container box formed as a rigid container shell in a quadrangular shape sized to fit through a standard minimum door opening of a dwelling unit. The container shell is formed by a bottom panel, upright side panels, top panel, rear panel, and removable front cover panel joined together by fastener members. The container box is mounted on roller wheels for delivery in a dwelling unit. A plurality of casework components are pre-assembled in the container shell and are installed in place when the container box is positioned in the dwelling unit. The container box may be formed as a half-height system of upper or lower casework components, and may be combined with other container box systems modularly.

1 . A system for pre-assembly of interior casework components for a wall space of a dwelling unit comprising:
 a container box formed as a rigid container shell in a quadrangular shape of predetermined vertical height, horizontal width, and depth dimensions that are selected to fit through a standard minimum door opening size of a dwelling unit, said rigid container shell having a quadrangular interior space formed by a horizontal bottom panel, a pair of spaced-apart upright side panels, a horizontal top panel, a rear backing panel, and a removable front cover panel which are joined together by fastener members at joints between respective facing edges of the panels;   at least a front pair and a back pair of roller wheels spaced apart and mounted at respective corners of a bottom surface of the horizontal bottom panel to enable the pre-assembled system to be moved for installation in the dwelling unit; and   a plurality of interior casework components pre-selected for the wall space of the dwelling unit that are pre-assembled in the interior space of the rigid container shell.   
     
     
         2 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein said rigid container shell is formed with sufficient strength and rigidity to support kitchen, bathroom, wet bar and other interior casework components mounted to inner surfaces forming the interior space of the rigid container shell. 
     
     
         3 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein said rigid container shell is configured to be installed as an integral part in the dwelling unit with the interior casework components. 
     
     
         4 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein said rigid container shell is dimensionally sized to allow passage through a standard minimum door opening size in dwelling unit of 3′-0″ width and 6′-8″ height, or to fit through a 2′-9″ width and 6′-6″ height of a minimum door opening size in renovations where existing door frames may be in place. 
     
     
         5 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein said top panel of the rigid container shell is made releasable from top edges of the upright side panels so that it can swivel to an upright position co-planar with the rear backing panel to provide an extended height for mounting upper casework components to the ceiling line of the dwelling unit. 
     
     
         6 . The system according to  claim 5 , wherein a rear edge of said top panel is joined by a full-length piano hinge to a top edge of the rear backing panel, and the combined height of the two panels plus wheels is dimensioned to fit within the standard ceiling height. 
     
     
         7 . The system according to  claim 5 , wherein vertical glide rails are pre-assembled to inner surfaces of the rear and top panels to facilitate positioning and mounting upper casework components thereon. 
     
     
         8 . The system according to  claim 5 , wherein upper casework components are pre-assembled in the rigid container shell nested on counter tops of lower casework components for transport, so that they can be mounted to the top panel when the container box is installed in position and the top panel is swiveled upright. 
     
     
         9 . The system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a finished outer panel that is attached to cover an exposed exterior surface of a panel of the container box, including a finished outer side panel and/or toe kick panels that cover the height of the wheels when the container box is installed in the dwelling unit. 
     
     
         10 . The system according to  claim 1 , further comprising 3-panel corner reinforcing plates used to form rigid corner joints at bottom rear corners of the panels. 
     
     
         11 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein said roller wheels are of the type having height adjustment to allow alignment of casework components with adjacent components. 
     
     
         12 . The system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a countertop leveling device provided between a pre-installed lower casework component and a counter top. 
     
     
         13 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein said first-mentioned container box with pre-assembled interior casework components for the wall space of the dwelling unit is combined with one or more other modular container box systems, including: (a) another container box with pre-assembled casework components forming an L-angled side and/or an open half-height or full-height system on an opposite-walled side of the dwelling space; (b) a half-height container box with pre-assembled casework components for a half-height system of upper or lower casework components; and (c) a pre-fabricated floor layer dimensioned to fit within the finished positions of two or three-sided container boxes. 
     
     
         14 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the container box is formed as a half-height container box for more efficient packing in a typical freight shipping container. 
     
     
         15 . The system according to  claim 14 , wherein the rear wall of a container box is formed as a half-height section combined with a vertically slidable section that can be moved to the desired vertical height for mounting upper casework components in the dwelling unit. 
     
     
         16 . The system according to  claim 14 , wherein two half-height container boxes are fastened together front-to-front without front cover panels for delivery, and are separated for installation in respective positions in the dwelling space. 
     
     
         17 . A method for pre-assembly of interior casework components for a wall space of a dwelling unit comprising the steps of:
 providing a container box formed as a rigid container shell in a quadrangular shape of predetermined vertical height, horizontal width, and depth dimensions that are selected to fit through a standard minimum door opening size of a dwelling unit, said rigid container shell having a quadrangular interior space formed by a horizontal bottom panel, a pair of spaced-apart upright side panels, a horizontal top panel, a rear backing panel, and a removable front cover panel which are joined together by fastener members at joints between respective facing edges of the panels;   providing at least a front pair and a back pair of roller wheels spaced apart and mounted at respective corners of a bottom surface of the horizontal bottom panel to enable the pre-assembled system to be moved for shipping, delivery and installation in the dwelling unit; and   pre-assembling a plurality of interior casework components for the wall space of the dwelling unit in the interior space of the rigid container shell.   
     
     
         18 . The method according to  claim 17 , further comprising the step of installing the container box in a permanent position along an intended wall space so as to become an integral part in the dwelling unit. 
     
     
         19 . The method according to  claim 17 , wherein said rigid container shell is dimensionally sized to allow passage through a standard minimum door opening size in dwelling unit of 3′-0″ width and 6′-8″ height, or to fit through a 2′-9″ width and 6′-6″ height of a minimum door opening size in renovations where existing door frames may be in place. 
     
     
         20 . The method according to  claim 17 , further comprising the step of combining said first-mentioned container box with pre-assembled interior casework components for a wall space of a dwelling unit with one or more other modular container box systems, including: (a) another container box with pre-assembled casework components forming an L-angled side and/or an open half-height or full-height system on an opposite-walled side of the dwelling space; (b) a half-height container box with pre-assembled casework components for a half-height system of upper or lower casework components; and (c) a pre-fabricated floor layer dimensioned to fit within the finished positions of two or three-sided container boxes.