Pallet Scales Calibration: How Often is the Procedure Required

Pallet Scales Calibration: How Often is the Procedure Required

For pallet scales, accuracy and durability are two of the most important factors when it comes to finding a scale that meets your needs. Calibration has always been incredibly important to ensure that industrial scales can produce accurate readings at all times. An inaccurate scale can cost companies real money, and it’s therefore critically important that any scale manufacturer has easy-to-follow calibration procedures in place to allow for proper calibration.

At Arlyn Scales, one of our goals has always been to look at the entire scale industry a bit differently. How we handle calibration is one of those instances, where we simply weren’t happy with how many scale manufacturers handle this aspect of their products. Thanks to our 30+ years of industry experience, we’ve developed an easy calibration process that is much different from what many of our competitors are doing. Some of our competitors offer calibration services where their scales need to be taken out of service for calibration, costing customers significant time and money. Many of our scales require little to no calibration, and if it is required can often be dealt with without ever taking one of our scales out of service.

At Arlyn Scales, we understand that a scale that’s out of service is a scale that’s costing you money, and we do everything in our power to ensure that your scale can provide accurate weight readings 24/7. Read on to learn more about the importance of calibration and how our industrial scales can continue to produce accurate readings day in and day out with little to no calibration necessary.

Proper Calibration is Important for Every Pallet Scale

Whether a pallet scale is calibrated in the field, or in the factory where it is assembled, calibration is critically important to ensure the long-term use of any scale. When you purchase any type of scale from Arlyn Scales, you can be confident that all of our scales are calibrated using a measuring instrument in our state-of-the-art factory located in Long Island, New York.

Once our scales have been calibrated they should be ready to provide you with years of trouble-free service. To further prevent the need for ongoingtimely calibration, our scales feature a self-calibration feature that helps to account for variations in temperature, as well as the degradation of certain scale components over time. Should our scales ever need to be calibrated, we have built an easy-to-use calibration function into each of our industrial scales, which makes in-the-field calibration a snap.

How to Tell if Your Pallet or Platform Scale Needs Calibration?

Prior to calibrating your scale, it’s important to understand if it’s even necessary. What you don’t want to do is calibrate a scale that was working perfectly fine, which can then cause you to have weight reading errors. Below are a few instances where your scale may need to be calibrated:

  • Scale movement – Depending on the type of industrial scale you have, if it’s moved, it may need to be recalibrated. This way you can ensure you’ll be able to produce accurate readings regardless of the location.
  • Inaccurate weight readings – If you place an item on a scale platform and you get inaccurate measurements, it may be time to calibrate your scale. Ensure that you’re not on any type of vibrating surface, or exposing your scale to air currents or changes in temperature. Certain scales such as force restoration scales can be especially vulnerable to vibrations and temperature changes. Electronics such as computers, cell phones, and 2-way radios can also cause RF interference that could affect the accuracy of your scale.

Easy Calibration Procedure for Industrial Pallet or Floor Scales

If you’ve purchased a scale from our team and think it may need to be calibrated, you can either contact our support team for confirmation or follow the steps below.

  1. Ensure proper placement – Before calibrating your scale ensure that it’s placed in an area where it’s not exposed to any type of air current and it is in an area with a stable temperature.
  2. Enter calibration mode – To enter the calibration mode on one of our pallet scales, access the Set-Up menu and then select Platform Setups and next Span Calibration. You will next be asked to enter a test weight value.
  3. Test weight value – When testing a weight value, you’ll want to ensure that the item you’re using is within the capacity restraints of the scale. We typically suggest that you choose an item that is around 50% of the scale’s capacity. Next, you’ll input the test calibration weight value using the keypad.
  4. Remove any other objects from the scale platform – Next, you’ll want to make sure the scale platform is clear of any objects. It’s also a good idea to check to ensure nothing is touching the scale platform and that the scale legs are level, and all touching the floor.
  5. Press ‘Calibrate’ – To access the calibration function simply press the Calibrate button on the scale itself.
  6. Place test weight on the platform – Now you’ll be asked to place a test weight item on the scale platform. Make sure this item is placed in the center of the scale platform. Wait a few seconds for the scale to stabilize. Once the calibration has been completed you’ll automatically return to the Platform menu and should be able to use the scale as normal.

Have Any Questions About the Scale Calibration Process?

As you can see, calibrating one of our industrial pallet scales is quite easy. Should you have any questions about the calibration steps mentioned above, or if you’re unsure if your scale even needs to be calibrated, feel free to reach out to our team today via phone toll-free at 800-645-4301 or through our online contact form. We’ll be happy to walk you through the calibration process if you would like.