Fascia’s Chocolates, a family business in Waterbury, Connecticut local to Adam's United States office, has been joyfully handcrafting delicious confections since 1964. From assorted bite-sized morsels to chocolate-covered coffee beans, potato chips and even Gelato, they’re the place to go when your sweet tooth starts aching.
As the holiday season approaches, Adam Equipment contacted Fascia’s to learn how they use weighing scales in their facility. After speaking with Carmen Romeo, Fascia’s President since 2009, it’s apparent just how much weight scales pull in the chocolate industry.
Where Does Fascia’s Use Scales?
“We have lots of scales in our facility, lots and lots of scales.” – Carmen
Production
Fascia’s kitchen employs many techniques, both time-tested and new, to create a variety of delicious products.
Fascia crafts its confections in bulk, requiring the use of large trays, bowls and molds, so the team uses a large-pan bench scale with a mountable display, such as Adam’s range, for easy viewing.
Carmen explains that Fascia’s confectioners will often use molds with four cavities to get a consistent shape and fill. They first tare out the mold. Then, a chocolatier pours chocolate while monitoring the weight on the display. They stop pouring when each cavity is the correct weight.
Since this process takes two gloved hands, Fascia’s confectioners need to be able to press the Tare button with ease, even with an elbow. They prefer a scale with a simple display that offers just a few large buttons – “the bigger the better,” Carmen states.
When weighing ingredients like “strong essence oils, flavourings or natural colourings,” which they use in tiny amounts at a time, a more precise compact scale like is ideal. Though these ingredients may be liquid, Fascia’s uses a scale instead of measuring by volume. Oil can be expensive, so this method allows them to keep every drop instead of scraping the side of a teaspoon and leaving waste behind, allows accurate measurements even when pouring flavours of different densities and reduces the clean-up process.
Packaging
In their packaging department, Fascia’s employs a checkweighing machine. It has the sophisticated ability to trickle and shake products until it reaches the proper weight. For example, if each bag of chocolate covered raisins needs to be at minimum 4 oz. The machine lets raisins through or shakes them off until the weight is as close as possible to 4 oz. By law, Fascia’s must always err on the side of giving too much to their customers, rather than not enough.
In all other cases there may be six or eight pieces to a box instead of 50. They hand count each one and weigh them with a scale for quality control purposes. Carmen states that they also “weigh boxes of chocolates after we’ve packed them, just to make sure they’re within specifications.” Being so thorough contributes to why they’re successful!
Retail
When you’re visiting Fascia’s Chocolates, you’ll find that you can purchase most loose (not previously packaged) items by weight. This requires a trade approved scale like the All boxes, bags or cups are Tared before product is added to ensure customers are getting exactly the amount of chocolate or Gelato you’re paying for, no more and no less.
When purchasing by piece, you would request the number of candies you want. They separate your choices by type and weigh them to determine your price. Fascia’s “charges based on the fractional weight rounded to the decimal.” Of course, this means that their retail scale must offer a minimum weight of at least 0.1oz. Depending on what you decide to purchase, the products may have different price levels. The totals are all added up and become the price you pay.
Shipping
Shipping is the department that requires simple “brute force,” where they simply “round to the next pound” when weighing, which is enough for UPS or USPS services. However, Carmen shares that the “dimensional weight” of their shipments can be just as, if not more, important than the physical weight when it comes to their shipping prices. Large packages, even if they’re light in weight, may cost more money to ship simply because of the amount of space they take in the truck.
The biggest culprit for Fascia’s? According to Carmen, it’s “big bundles of popcorn” – chocolate covered, of course, their Popcorn Nut Crunch mix. Light but bulky.
As Fascia’s usually ships products to individuals as it’s ordered, rather than in bulk, a bench scale like the models is ideal for simply calculating the price they’ll get charged by the carrier.
What Features Does Fascia’s Value the Most in Weighing Scales?
Easy to Clean
There’s not much mess in Fascia’s kitchens, but when drips happen, it’s much easier to clean if the scale offers a stainless-steel pan, sealed keypad or an IP rating. That way, they can be wiped down with soapy water and a gentle cloth. If messy scales were more typical, a scale like Adam’s , which boasts an IP67-rating, would be recommended.
Simple Operation
As a small business, Fascia’s prefers their weighing scales straightforward and easy to use – even with their elbows. This keeps their processes as smooth and efficient as possible, allowing staff to focus on their work.
Multiple Weighing Units
Many Fascia’s products are measured out in ounces, while others are measured out in pounds. Without multiple weighing units, you may be able to tell that a 16 oz. bag is one pound, but when larger orders come in, it’s much easier to see 4.7 lbs. instead of 75.2 oz. A weighing scale that allows for that kind of flexibility is crucial at Fascia’s.
Facilitating Fascia’s Confections
Fascia’s Chocolates relies on weighing scales to:
• Craft consistent and high-quality confections.
• Accurately measure and package products.
• Offer fair pricing for retail customers.
• Optimise shipping costs and logistics.
Without scales in their facility, Fascia’s may not be the success they are today – officially 60 years in business!
If you’re curious where you can find scales like those used at Fascia’s, contact our team, we’ll be happy to help.
