Do you have any idea just how big a job laundry really is? You might be used to saying that your organization has to clean a ton of clothing, but that might look a drop in the bucket when you take a moment to consider just how much material gets dirtied across the entire nation and the world.
Laundry services across the country process many tons of laundry daily. There are massive requirements throughout the armed services. Each of tens of thousands of hotels must launder linens, towels, and other articles. Large restaurants may have in house laundry facilities, while smaller ones contract to professional laundry services.
Schools and camps may need to provide laundry services for their students. Many industrial firms need to launder uniforms or protective clothing, and of course, there are any number of professional laundry services that are available to consumers.
Fortunately, there are some tools out there that can help.
Platform Laundry Scales
It is important to know the weight of the laundered articles. Professional washing equipment is generally specified to be able to accept a certain weight of items. In order to be economically efficient, it is desirable to load the machines up to, but not exceeding their specified limit. Laundry services are also often charged by weight.
This is largely due to the manner in which clothing and other materials are cleaned. Laundry is usually loaded into a laundry cart. Depending on the operation, this cart may be a small, wheeled bin, or a larger tote, or even a very large motorized conveyance.
These laundry carts must be placed on a platform scale in order to ascertain the weight. Generally, the weight of the cart itself is known, and it will be subtracted from the measured weight to calculate the weight of the laundry items.
These laundry scales should include a number of features. It is important that the scale platform have as low a profile as possible. Typically, a ramp will be used so that the laundry cart can be easily pushed onto the platform scale. The lower the height of the platform, the lower the angle of the ramp can be, facilitating this process.
Furthermore, a low platform height will allow the ramp to be shorter, therefore minimizing floor space. Some of the popular laundry scales, such as those produced by Arlyn Scales, place the scale load cells directly into pockets built into the scale frame in order to reduce the height.
Best of all, even those who opt for aluminum platform scales will still find that the load cells are alwaysonly ever made from 100 percent genuine stainless steel. Inox stainless steel alloys feature a high amount of chromium, which means that they’re resistant to corrosion and have a lower level of corrosion risk of rusting compared to traditional metallic substances.
This preserves the strength and integrity of the frame while providing a longer lifetimelower scale profile. It is also important that this industrial scale is fabricated from materials that will hold up well in a laundry environment. Of course, there is significant water and moisture present.
Detergents and other laundry chemicals can also cause corrosion of both the electronic scale and its load cells. Most of these types of scales are constructed from painted steel. The paint coating will provide some level of corrosion protection. But the carts themselves, and other items in the laundry facility, are certain to quickly scratch the paint surface.
Corrosion will quickly attack the bare metal in the area of the scratch, and will, in fact, continue to corrode the neighboring areas, even underneath the paint surface. Arlyn Scales offers its platform scales in either aluminum or stainless steel. While stainless steel is most effective in resisting corrosion, it is also quite a bit more expensive.
The paint finished steel scales are also heavier, making them less easy to move around within the facility. The aluminum digital scales may provide the best combination of low cost and corrosion resistance. Both the aluminum scales and the stainless steel scales manufactured by Arlyn Scales utilize stainless steel load cells exclusively. This is in contrast to most other platform scales of this type, which offer steel load cells with nickel plating.
Digital Laundry Scales
Although the plated load cells are less expensive, they will not provide as long service as the stainless steel. Eventually, they will experience pitting and other corrosion. The electronic elements on the load cell will not adhere as well to the surface. Additionally, steel load cells do not provide as much protection from shock loads.
These types of shocks will be experienced by the platform scale if the laundry carts accidentally hit an already loaded scale from a side angle. Of course, this type of accident occurs quite often. The stainless steel load cells are able to withstand this type of abuse much better.
In fact, the specific alloy of stainless steel used is then heat-treated, to provide the optimal modulus of elasticity. Perhaps most importantly, though, these scales feature special digital equipment to keep them going in any scenario.
The electronic components on the scale are also covered with a silicone material for further protection. The electronic scales must also include a digital indicator that is easy to read by an operator who may be some distance away. Large graphics displays offer this capability. It is also useful to provide communication channels from the laundry scale, so that the weight data can be recorded on a printer, or directed to a computer for data storage and later availability.
Arlyn UpScale indicators, in particular, should offer the best connectivity options since they’re capable of interfacing with so many other pieces of gear.
Industrial and Commercial Uses for Professional Laundry Scales
Commercial and industrial use cases for this kind of equipment are limitless. Everything from prison facilities to daycare centers and hospitals need to wash numerous amounts of clothing and other items made out of material. Even automotive detailing operations joints have to use a great deal of special soft cloths in order to keep polished vehicles looking fresh.
If any of these uses sounds familiar to you, then make sure to visit our contact page and get in touch with one of our knowledgeable representatives. They’ll help you to find the platform scales that best fits your particular use case.
