Scale Selection

Firstly do I need a trade approved scale?

If you are selling a product by weight or count then the Weight and Measures regulations state that a trade approved scale is necessary.

It is an offence if an unapproved scale is used for transactions and prosecution can arise.

Also if a disagreement arose over weigh then it would be difficult to defend if your scale is not approved.

If this is the case for you then when asked by our online sales person simple confirm Trade Approved required and all the machines displayed will meet that criteria.

All equipment supplied can be approved for use in Europe, However if this is the case please tell us where in the EC it is going to be delivered we can then correctly calibrate it.

For those out-side Europe please check the local regulations before we supply.

Different categories of scale required different ways of identifying the correct capacity and accuracy for your application.

These are general basic requirements and cannot take into account of actual site conditions or a problem specific to individual product or processes and are for guidance only.

If in doubt ask.

Laboratory and analytical balances

These are selected for accuracy rather than capacity.

You need to know the degree of accuracy you wish to work to, for example 0.1 gram.

A scale has to round up and round down depending on the actual weight being applied.

Therefore 100.1 gram displayed could in fact be 100.049 or 100.14 gram.

Therefore if you wish to weigh to 0.1 of a gram we recommend that that you consider a minor division of 0.01 gram for complete accuracy.

If you use the same principle for all balance selection then the final weighing result will always accurate.

The capacity is linked to division size.

On the appropriate webpage simply select 0.01 gram division of weight and all the scales with that accuracy can be selected with the various capacities.

Bench and platform scales

These would be usually selected by capacity.

All quality weighing instruments have accuracy and or tolerances of plus or minus one division of weight throughout the weighing range.

If you require 30 kg capacity or 5000 kg capacity simply select in the correct category when asked by the online salesperson and the scales with those weight ranges will be shown.

The minor division of weight is also shown and is normally far in excess of the accuracy required for general weighing. If you do require very fine accuracy, go to the high accuracy section.

The physical sizes are also shown and can be selected; remember weighing relies on the vertical load.

It does not matter if the goods being weighed slightly overhang the weighing platform, providing that they are not touching anything then a true weight will be obtained, however safety must be considered.

It is also very important to consider site conditions there is a considerable difference between a scale being used to weigh the odd parcel or a pallet and one that is heavily used in harsh conditions.

Therefore it is strongly recommended that heavy duty platforms or extra heavy-duty considered providing long life and retaining accuracy where site conditions require it.

Crane scales

To select a crane scale firstly consider what you wish to weigh, if you require a maximal weight 2000 kg then select a scale of larger capacity such as 3000Kg to ensure you have enough weighing capacity in the event it goes over.

Remember that this crane scale becomes a continuous link in the lifting of products by the crane.

Therefore serious consideration must be given to the fact that if you do lift heavier items and your crane has a capacity of 5000Kg is the scale going to be removed every time you go over its capacity?

It would be much safer to use the 5000 Kg capacity crane scale to ensure complete safety and reliability.

All Crane scales provided by Scales 4 Industry are supplied with proof load certificates as required by health and safety regulations and insurance companies at no additional cost.

Counting scales

Counting of components relies on consistent individual item weights. If the components vary considerably then the accuracy in final count will diminish with the greater variation.

What first must be considered is can the scale accurately count the items you wish to count? Remember that the larger the capacity the courser the machine will be in counting.

You need to consider the individual weight of lightest item that that you are going to use.

Below is a quick table showing the lightest items that counting scales can count by capacity. It is not a guarantee of accuracy but a good start.

• 1.5KG - 0.0015gram
• 3KG - 0.003 gram
• 6KG - 0.006 gram
• 15KG - 0.015 gram
• 30KG - 0.03 gram

If the items you wish to count items that are much lighter then go to the high accuracy counting scales section and see below.

Counting light items in bulk.

As you now appreciate the larger the capacity the courser machine is in counting.

Therefore if you wish to count light items in bulk i.e. skips and bins etc then you will need to use a twin platform weighing and counting scale.

An example of this system could be a sample scale weighing up to 30 kg capacity for example which is used for setting the counting facilities with great accuracy and linked to this is a bulk platform that can weigh up to 5000 kg.

Equally this could be a 500 g sample scale linked to a 30 kg bulk scale.

The above systems ensure high accuracy final count is consistently achieved.