Weighing is an integral process in many industries. From preparing medication to fueling planes, accurate weight measurement is essential for efficient operations.
High-precision analytical balances must be carefully operated to avoid damage or erroneous results. For instance, avoid shock loading the balance or touching standard weights with bare hands. It’s also important to keep the balances away from air vents during weighing, since this can affect their mass.
Accuracy
Weighing is a common, non-contact method of measuring dry bulk material quantity and flowrates. It’s a critical component of many production processes, especially in the manufacturing industry. The accuracy of a scale or balance is an important factor that must be taken into consideration when selecting, installing and operating the system.
The first step to achieving accurate weighing results is selecting top-quality components. Load cells (also known as load sensors or transducers) are machined pieces of metal that bend with the weight’s mechanical force, which are sensed by strain gauges bonded to points on the cell. This produces an electrical signal that is proportional to the load.
The next step is to ensure that the system is properly installed. Moisture can wick into the junction box of the load cells, decreasing the capacitance between signal lines and causing electrical noise that affects measurement accuracy. This is why a NEMA 4 rated junction box should be used.
Efficiency
A good weighing process contributes to efficiency in many ways. For example, it helps to ensure that the correct quantity of raw materials is used during production, minimizing errors and waste. This can lead to a significant boost in productivity.
Additionally, precise weighing processes are essential for maintaining quality and consistency. This is particularly important for food and pharmaceutical manufacturing where even small deviations can affect the final product. Pre-weighing ingredients and components or integrating a batching system help to ensure that every batch meets the highest standards.
Automated weighing systems can also be integrated into simple or complex Statistical Process Control (SPC) systems, making it easy to carry out data analysis and adjust production processes. In addition, regular maintenance and calibration help to keep automated weighing systems running at peak performance. This enables companies to achieve higher levels of accuracy and efficiency, which can lead to cost savings in the long run. This can help businesses to meet demand more quickly and stay competitive.
Safety
Weighing equipment must be properly calibrated, maintained and operated. This ensures that measurements are consistent and accurate and reduces the risk of errors, which can lead to expensive mistakes or hazardous situations. For example, weighing dangerous chemicals accurately prevents accidental reactions and overexposure that can cause injury or illness to workers and environmental harm to the surrounding environment.
Accurate weighing of ingredients also ensures that the proper ingredients are added in the right order to meet production specifications, maintain product quality and minimize ingredient waste. In food processing, this can mean the difference between a successful recipe and an unsuccessful one.
For Hazardous Area applications and confined spaces, Hardy Process Solutions offers a wide variety of weighing systems designed with safety in mind. These systems utilize Intrinsically Safe barriers that limit power and current from standard equipment to low-energy intrinsically safe load cells located in the hazardous zone, making them compatible with ATEX and other government-designated zones.
Inventory management
When implemented correctly, weighing processes can streamline warehouse operations, boost accuracy of shipping and billing and increase business growth. It also helps to cut costs by avoiding waste and reducing the amount of stock that needs to be purchased.
Automated systems often come with features that help to ensure accurate weighing and batch manufacturing traceability, as well as meeting regulatory standards. They can also help to reduce operational risks and exposure, particularly when working with hazardous materials.
For example, standing weighing (also known as tare management) enables scale indicators to display net weights rather than gross, making it easier to dose up a full container without the need for re-weighing. This is particularly useful when dealing with liquid components or solutions that cannot be dispensed directly from their original containers. The use of high and low alarms can further assist with tare management, allowing operators to see when a silo or vessel is approaching its desired level.