When using any type of weighing scale in your operations, the most important element is the accuracy and consistency of the results. As a business, you need to be assured that you’re getting reliable measurements as and when needed. Regular scale service can provide this assurance. Over time, a weighing scale can lose its reliability and accuracy due to general wear and tear, providing incorrect measurements as a result. Having incorrect measurements could compromise both your production process and completed product with the overuse or underuse of certain ingredients/materials.
Further to this, when a scale breaks that can result in a prolonged period of downtime, which costs you time and money. A recent report by Senseye found that Fast Moving Consumer Goods & Consumer Packaged Goods companies lose “25 hours a month to unplanned downtime” which can prove very costly. The way to avoid such obstacles is to have regular scale service and maintenance, with 72% of FMCG companies reporting that “predictive maintenance has become a strategic initiative”.
Like any other machine that gets used on a regular, daily basis, a weighing scale will wear over time and that will affect its accuracy. If you have a vehicle, it’s good practice to have regular MOTs and services. Likewise for a scale, service is important to make sure the scale is capable and suitable for your business operations. This might range from a basic calibration to verify the scale is measuring accurately, to solutions like scale repair or replacements if there is substantial damage or deterioration.
What Is Scale Calibration?
One of the most important parts of scale service is calibration. Scale calibration is a process that ensures that your weighing equipment is measuring items correctly to maintain the consistent quality of your products. As mentioned, a scale will gradually pick up wear and tear over time which will affect the accuracy of measurements. This can also occur due to environmental effects like temperature, humidity, exposure to dirt or dust, and more. With all these factors, a loss of accuracy is inevitable without regular calibration.
As part of a calibration test, measurements are taken from a scale and referred against standardised test weights as per national and international weighing standards to identify any deviation. Any scales found to be incorrect are then adjusted to ensure that that the scale is measuring within any defined tolerances – with repeat calibration undertaken to confirm this. To learn more about this, have a read of our very own Guide to Scale Calibration.
At Stevens Traceability, we provide high-quality calibration services for a variety of weighing instruments, from bench and balance scales to checkweighers and bulk platform scales. Certified by the UK Weighing Federation for calibration services, you can be assured that our expert engineers can help you maintain accuracy throughout your weighing processes by carrying out scale calibration to the highest standard. We understand the importance of calibration, which is why our calibration service is available across all levels of our service contracts.
If you’re interested in Stevens Service, email us at [email protected] or call us on 01254 685200.