Whether you work in construction, materials testing, agriculture or logistics, you need an industrial scale that’s durable enough to provide accurate results even in the harshest environments. This blog will help you understand your options, so you can select the best industrial scale to handle anything you might need to weigh.
Understanding Your Weighing Needs
Capacity and Readability
The industrial scale best suited for your purposes will heavily depend on how heavy the items you’re weighing are, as well as how precise your results need to be. Something to keep in mind is that the more weight an industrial scale can handle (capacity), the less fine the results will be (readability).
For example, our highest capacity industrial scale is our IHS 20a Crane Scale, which can handle up to 10,000kg. Its readability is 2kg, meaning it measures in 2kg increments. For comparison’s sake, the Equinox Semi-Micro Balance designed for laboratories has a capacity of 62 grams, with a readability of 0.01mg.
The best way to decide your capacity requirements is to consider the absolute heaviest item you could expect to weigh regularly and aim for an industrial scale that can handle slightly more than that. This prevents the danger of overloads, which can damage your scale. Unfortunately, the same scale you use to weigh your average cruise ship propeller will not be precise enough when you’re weighing screws during inventory (the average cruise ship propeller is 10,000kg – exactly the capacity of our IHS!). Therefore, you may need a few different scales ranging in capacity, so you can be guaranteed the appropriate precision when necessary.
Your Working Environment
The environment is also important, as the conditions your scale will be subjected to will determine the material and type of scale you may need. For example, if your working environment is frequently dusty or dirty and the items you’re weighing will be too, a washdown or waterproof scale will make your life easier. Grime can build up and affect your weighing results over time, so being able to hose down your scale to clean it quickly and easily is a huge time saver.
You legally need a trade approved scale if you sell items based on their weight – such as bags of concrete priced by the pound. Trade approval is a legal certification that signifies your weighing results are accurate, so customers can trust that they’re getting the full 90kg of concrete they paid for, rather than 85kg. This also helps your business, since you know that you’re giving exactly 90kg instead of 95kg, for example, preventing a loss of profit.
Luckily, most variations of weighing scales – bench, floor, etc. – have some washdown or trade approved options. Want both? See the Gladiator Approved.
Types of Industrial Weighing Scales
Some scales are more appropriate than others for certain purposes. Let’s start from the bottom of the capacity range and work our way up, discussing the applications each type of scale is most suitable for.
Bench Scale
Bench scales are your best bet when you need durability as well as high precision. They’re arguably the most versatile scale, as they’re compact enough to take up very little bench space and often come equipped with a rechargeable battery to make them portable. Adam offers bench scales with capacities ranging as low as 2kg to as high as 200kg, with readabilities between 0.05g and 0.05kg to give you the greatest chance of finding your best fit. Our CDT Dual Counting Scales are even more adaptable, as they can be connected to a higher capacity base, allowing you the precision necessary for small counts with the durability necessary for larger counts.
Our Aqua ABW-S Stainless Steel Bench Scale is a popular choice for industrial applications, thanks to its impressive IP68 rating. The Aqua ABW-S is fully dust and waterproof, allowing it to be washed down when it gets dirty. If you require a bench scale for a specific application, our Cruiser series offers the CKT Bench Checkweighing Scale and CCT Bench Counting Scale, both specially designed to meet your needs. Specialized scales like these are helpful when it comes to repetitive weighing tasks as well as counting products during inventory and stock control.
Floor Scale
Floor scales offer bigger weighing pans for larger and heavier items. They’re typically less portable than bench scales simply because of their size, though many may still boast a rechargeable battery or wheels to help facilitate movement. We stock floor scales with capacities between 35kg and 600kg, with readabilities between 0.01kg and 0.05kg. Each feature a stainless-steel weighing pan for ultimate durability.
Just because they’re bigger doesn’t mean their uses are diminished – floor scales are specialized according to their indicator. For example, the BKT and BCT label printing scales are constructed by combining a stainless steel base with the AE 503 and AE 504 indicators. Meanwhile, the Gladiator range features the IP68 rated AE 403 indicator, now with a trade approved option for applications where a selling price is based on weight.
Platform Scale
We offer a range of heavy duty and robust platform scales, ideal for weighing large and bulky items. They’re large, usually rectangular or square, and take up a significant amount of floor space. Whether it’s boxes, shipping crates, pallets or other oversized objects, a platform scale can handle them with ease. Our options range in capacity from 35kg to 4,500kg.
Our PT Platforms are extremely popular for industrial applications, as they’re rugged and durable as well as affordable. PT Platforms can be purchased on their own, or as a package deal with GK indicators. Accessories like ramps can be purchased for ease of loading and unloading items. However, if hand trucks are your most common method of loading and unloading, ramps are built in to our PTM Drum Platforms.
Generally, where you place the platform scale is where it will stay, so guarantee that you have a clear space dedicated to weighing. If you find that you only occasionally need a platform scale and can’t justify saving the space for one, our AELP Pallet Beams may be ideal for you. They can be spread to accommodate almost any size package or pallet and then be packed up until next use.
Pallet Truck Scale
When you weigh pallets frequently (such as in shipping and receiving) and want to be as efficient as possible, a pallet truck scale like our PTSplus or PTT is ideal. The PTSplus features an AE 403 indicator for dustier environments, while the PTT utilizes a label printing indicator, to help keep track of how much each pallet weighs.
These scales allow you to weigh and travel simultaneously. Simply load a pallet onto the scale and lift it up to get a weight, then roll it to the pallet’s ultimate destination. Our pallet truck scales have capacities of 2000kg, with readabilities of 0.5kg. These scales are most useful when they’re on a smooth floor. Bumpy or rugged outdoor terrain may cause errors in your results.
Crane Scale
A crane scale, or hanging scale, operates by hooking on to an item or its container and weighing it in the air. Crane scales are perfect when your item is an abnormal shape or size and can’t be weighed properly resting on a regular platform scale – like that cruise ship propeller. It doesn’t necessarily have to suspend from a crane: gantries are suitable options as long as they’re strong enough.
Another benefit of crane scales is that they only take up room when they’re weighing – otherwise, the space underneath the crane or gantry is free for other use, and the compact crane scale can be stored away until next time.
They’re also extremely safe, since all our crane scales come with a remote control for operation in the air. No need to risk climbing on anything to press the Tare button when you can hit it from a safe distance away! With other types of scales, the orientation of the item you’re weighing matters, though the swivel hook of our crane scales allows loading from the most convenient direction for you.
We offer three crane scales of various capacities, ranging from 50kg to 10,000kg.
Now that you’re properly informed on the different types of industrial scales and their uses, you can choose the right one with confidence. Still unsure? You can contact us and we’ll be happy to help.
