The true hero of the water treatment process is the water treatment scale. When chemicals are added to water, they are not just added randomly. They must be added in precise amounts. The people who are performing the process need to know how much chemical material they are working with. One way that they can accomplish this is by keeping the chemical tanks on platform scales.

Municipal drinking water undergoes purification to remove algae, bacteria, fungi, viruses, some minerals, as well as man-made pollutants like fertilizers. These are some of the various processes that are used to achieve this end.

Screening: This is often the first step taken in purifying water that has been gathered from the surface of the Earth (as opposed to groundwater). Basically the water is passed through a screen filter that removes large debris like sticks, leaves, and trash.

Pre-conditioning: This is a process in which sodium carbonate is added to the water in order to precipitate the calcium carbonate in the water. Both the sodium carbonate and calcium carbonate can then be removed from the water by passing it through a filter. Special water treatment scales must be used to determine the amounts of sodium carbonate.

pH Adjustment: Making sure that water has the proper pH for its intended use is very important. Water that is intended for consumption needs to have a pH of approximately 7, which is neither acidic nor alkaline. If the water is too acidic or too alkaline for consumption, then chemicals are added until the water is brought to an acceptable pH level.

Flocculation: Everybody likes to drink clear water. Flocculation makes this possible. Flocculation is a process of clarifying, or clearing up, water. In this process chemicals are added to the water that cause muddying particles to precipitate, so that they can be filtered out.

Sedimentation: When water is being treated, it is often kept moving around at fairly high speeds so that it does not grow stagnant. When water goes through the sedimentation process, it is allowed to sit in a tank where it is moved at a relatively low speed. This allows for all of precipitation to settle to the bottle of the tank.

Filtration: Water is passed through filters in order to remove any particles that may not have yet settled to the bottom. There are many different forms of filtration, including slow sand filters, lava filters, and membrane filters. Ultimately they all serve the purpose of removing unwanted particles from water. At this point, water treatment scales will weigh the materials removed, to ensure that it is free of contaminants.

Talking scales have even more range when applied to industrial uses. A counting scale for example  features precision counting ability. The “Quick Count” mode lets you easily count parts using a single push of a button. For more complex counting tasks, the menu functions give you the ability to store, and then retrieve the piece weight of as many as 450 different items. With a text to speech addition, inventory could be taken in a fraction of the time it took before as the worker would never have to look up from his task to log his numbers.

Industrial scales often face rugged and harsh conditions. A cylinder scale, for example, may have to support over 250 pounds of a tilted cylinder as liquid is being loaded or taken off the platform. A platform scale may be subject to high shock loads as forklifts loading large pallets inadvertently bump into the side of the scale. It can take every bit of a worker’s concentration to avoid this problem. A talking readout can reduce the stress of the worker, making industrial accidents less likely and the workplace safer for all.

However, one of the best uses for a text to speech option when considering workplace safety is for use with an explosive environment scale. In a case where hazardous materials are in use and the scale is built with four stainless steel load cells embedded in a welded frame for maximum shock and abuse resistance, the business of safety is serious. Workplace hazards can be minimized when the hazardous materials handler can stay completely focused on handling, without needing to watch the digital display.

The bottom line is that humans are fallible, and long series of numbers can become lost or confused when they are just received in one form. The mind often interposes numbers and human error is the main cause of bad data. All human beings learn in different ways. Some humans are auditory learners while others find a visual approach works best for them. The combination of both visual and auditory stimulation has been scientifically proven to decrease the likelihood of error. Scales with an auditory or talking feature can assist disabled workers, aid in employee cooperation and are the best bet in increasing production while eliminating error.

In an age where constant email checking is becoming a necessity, Wi-Fi is all the rage. Besides being important in the home and the office, it is found in airports, at train stations, and on moving buses. Now, it is also found in industrial scales.

A few higher-quality electronic scale manufacturers, such as Arlyn Scales, are now providing wi-fi connectivity as an option in much of their industrial scale lines. Previous to wireless, there were several methods for linking digital platform scales, bench scales, and floor scales to computers. RS-232 allows one scale to be linked to a computer. RS-485 allows several electronic scales at a time to be linked to a computer. For both of these protocols, RS-232 and RS-485 to USB converters are available. In these cases, the computer linkage can be used to store precise digital weight information in databases and spreadsheets.

More recently, Ethernet connectivity has become a common protocol for connecting digital scales into a Local Area Network. Besides allowing an industrial scale to be controlled and monitored from any computer on the network, this method also allows access to a scale controller from anywhere in the world, over the internet. Arlyn Scales even provides Remote Indicator software with its network electronic scales, which can read scale information on any computer with internet access.

RS-232, RS-485, and Ethernet all pose one typical difficulty-they require cabling. Often, an industrial scale may be found on a factory work floor that is several hundred feet away from a monitoring room or office. Particularly with RS-232 and RS-485, cabling becomes very expensive. Ethernet is much more commonly found built into many modern buildings for the purpose of having a Local Access Network, so very often, a building does not have to be retrofitted. Wireless connectivity, however, has the same benefits as Ethernet, when built into industrial scales, without requiring the cabling. Electronic scales can still be accessed from any computer on the network as well as from any computer in the world using the Remote Indicator software.

Aggregates are everywhere we look in the world around us. These materials, which are made up of an aggregate of different other materials, including various types of stones, clay, silt, and sand, include the asphalt that paves our roads, the concrete that is used for the foundations of our skyscrapers, or the cement that makes up the bricks of our homes. There is no single aggregate-each one is made differently for a different purpose. One aggregate that uses a certain mixture of stones, silt, and petroleum-based binding may have very different characteristics than one that uses another mixture of pebbles, clay, and a different binding. One aggregate may be more suitable for roads while another may be more suitable for sidewalks.

On any construction site, construction managers must ensure that the aggregate they are using, whether concrete or asphalt, meets the specifications necessary for the job. Therefore, at set intervals of time, the team must carry out a compositional analysis of the aggregate. The aggregate is poured into a sieve with large holes that will only block the largest pieces of stone from falling through. Following this, it is poured into sieves with consecutively smaller and smaller holes until each component of the aggregate is in its own sieve. Then, the sieves and their contents must be weighed with an electronic scale. The total percentage of each material is calculated and compared with the necessary standards.

It is necessary to measure the composition of each aggregate very accurately. This becomes particularly difficult when each component may weigh up to 100 pounds. A standard digital scale may only be able to weigh each component to .01 pounds, which is not precise enough. One scale company, Arlyn Scales, has developed ultra-precision electronic scales that use Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) technology for aggregate testing. These industrial scales are rugged enough to withstand the force of aggregate components while being able to weigh each component to .001 pounds.

Recycling programs have become widespread in many industries for several different reasons. Economically, it is extremely viable for companies to sell any unused materials, including steel, iron, glass, plastic, rubber, wood, paper, and precious metals, to recycling companies. Environmentally, any products that are reused rather than placed in landfills help protect valuable land and nature. Legally, it is becoming more and more common for states and municipalities to pass legislation required industrial entities to create these recycling programs.

When recycled products are brought to recycling plants, these plants must first sort out the different products, and then must weigh them in order to determine how much to pay the donator. Digital platform scales are ideal for weighing this recycled material. These digital scales usually have a capacity of about 1000 pounds, which is a reasonable capacity for the expected loads in a recycling plant. They can range in sizes. Arlyn Scales platform scales are offered in a 20″x27″ size for smaller packages of recycled material, a 36″x36″ size for larger boxes, and a 48″x48″ size for large loads. In addition, these scales are only 1 7/8″ high which make for easy loading and unloading.

Recycling plants may have a corrosive environment that can damage the electrical platform scales. Corrosion resistant scales are beneficial. Therefore, it is often necessary to make the scale components out of materials that won’t corrode. High quality scale manufacturers, like Arlyn Scales, make their load cells out of a special stainless steel alloy. While this alloy is more difficult to machine than steel or aluminum, which is found in lower-quality scales, it is much more resistant to corrosive materials. In addition, stainless steel load cells are more resistant to bending that occurs when they are exposed to heavy shock loads. In recycling plants, where forklifts are often used to place heavy loads on the industrial scale, this extra strength is extremely important.

In almost any industry, it is very important that all weight measurements be extremely precise. However, many different conditions affect the precision of industrial scales. Precision scales must be on stable, level surfaces. They should not be exposed to water or other material which may corrode the load cell and the housing. Industrial scales should be kept at room temperature.

However, sometimes, due to the nature of the work that is being done, an industrial scale may have to be subject to undesirable conditions. For example, in the food processing industry, food must be packaged by a very specific weight. This packaging often must happen in refrigerated or freezing conditions, which affect the accuracy of any precision scale.

In industrial scales, a transducer called a strain gauge load cell detects how much weight is acting on it and then outputs an electrical signal. When an object is placed on it, the load cell stretches a certain amount proportional to the weight of the object. This stretching bends a strain gauge, which is an electrical resistor, and changes its resistance. This changes the electrical output signal. At low temperatures, the load cell will contract, which will change the electrical output of the resistor, making the computerized components of the scale believe that there is a weight on the load cell. Manufacturers of high-quality electronic scales, like Arlyn Scales, will counteract this effect by using temperature-compensating resistors.

Another component of industrial scales that is affected by low temperatures it the scale’s digital indicator. Most digital scale manufacturers use Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs) as indicators. At low temperatures, many LCDs suffer a lost of contrast or even a complete loss of visibility. Arlyn Scales uses special low-temperature LCDs to avoid this problem. In addition, it is important to use a sealed, gasketed housing for the display to prevent moisture from reaching the electronic components.

Industrial scales are often subject to very harsh conditions. A cylinder scale may have to support a 250 pound tilted liquid gas cylinder as it is being loaded on and off. A platform scale may be subject to high shock loads as large pallets are placed on it by a forklift. Parts counting scales may also have to support these shock loads if a large batch of parts are placed on it at one time.

The most important component of any electronic scale is the transducer, which senses force, and outputs an electronic signal. Most often, the transducer is a strain gauge load cell. When force from an object acts on the load cell, it bends in a very controlled manner. When the object is removed, the load cell unbends back to its original position, much like a spring. A strain gauge, a type of electrical resistor, is placed on the load cell. As the load cell bends under the weight of an object, the resistance of the strain gauge changes. The weight of the object is proportional to the change in resistance of the strain gauge, which is affected by the amount of bending of the load cell.

Many industrial scale manufacturers choose to use aluminum alloy load cells in their scales since it is relatively cheap and it is very easy to machine. However, these aluminum load cells are very easy to damage. A shock load may bend the aluminum so much that it will not be able to spring back to its original position. If this happens, the electronic scale is no longer usable. Other manufacturers used nickel-plated steel load cells. However, these devices are susceptible to corrosion. High-quality industrial scale manufacturers, like Arlyn Scales, often choose to use a 17-4 stainless steel alloy. Load cells made from this material are very difficult to damage, and therefore, can sustain larger shock loads and can last longer.

All types of liquids, powders, pellets, slurries and other materials are handled in a wide variety of different types of cans, buckets, pails, drums, tanks and other types of containers. Traditionally, these have been filled by hand. Liquids are often dispensed by a manually operated pump or gravity fed valve. Other types of materials may also be gravity fed, or filled by use of a conveyor or other type of device. In all of these cases, the accuracy of filling is dependent on the operator. Of course, it is also labor intensive, as the operator is needed at all times to monitor the filling process.

Industrial scales are perfect for monitoring the filling process. A bench scale is used to keep track of the weight during the filling process for smaller sized cans, pails and other containers. A drum scale will serve this purpose for drums and small tanks, whereas a platform scale or floor scale can handle larger dewars and larger tanks. While this will solve the accuracy issue, it still requires the filling operator to read the scale and control the filling process.

Arlyn Scales offers a programmable set-point controller for their entire line of bench scales, drum scales, platform scales and floor scales. This allows the filling operator to program the desired weight into the industrial scale. Electrical signals from the scale will control the filling device, shutting it off when the target weight is reached. While this minimizes the efforts required of the fill operator, there may still be some inaccuracies caused by latent delay in turning off pumps, and valves, and the material remaining in fill pipes or tubes.  This controller permits a second target value to be programmed, which can set the filling into a much slower trickle feed. Generally, this will be sufficient to obtain the desired target weights.

But not all industrial applications are created equally. Just being tough will be sufficient for most situations. But certain uses require an electronic scale to be able to withstand harsh chemical environments. One of the most common of these is found in municipal water treatment facilities, both for the municipal water supply itself, and for the treatment of waste water. A wide variety of very corrosive materials are metered in very small amounts into the treatment process. The drum scales that hold these drums must not get damaged by chemical spills or even the vapor from these chemicals. Floor scales that are used to hold tanks or totes must be similarly protected.

Arlyn Scales offers cylinder scales, platform scales and floor scales with stainless steel construction and a unique coating for excellent protection. The coating on these industrial scales is comprised of a special anti corrosive epoxy. Even the best coatings will only protect the electronic scale if it has not been scratched or abraded. Ultra hard garnet particles are mixed into the epoxy to protect the scale platform from wear.

But often, the data must be used at some other location or at some other time. The weight of a package to be shipped may need to be automatically entered into a parcel manifest. Or a label may need to be printed. A record in a database may need to be kept of the number of packages filled by the parts counting scale. The contents in the drum on the drum scale may need to be monitored from a remote location. The doctor may need to keep records of the patients weight for each visit.

An Internet connection is an ideal means for performing all of these functions. Arlyn Scales offers this as an option for all of their industrial scales. This connection may be used specifically within an individual facility. Other computers on the local area network may be given access to any or all of the connected electronic scales. Or, with the proper software, these Arlyn Scales may be viewed, and controlled from any device that has Internet connectivity. This is particularly suitable for larger organizations that may need to collect data from a number of different facilities. It is also especially useful in those situation where there are mandated documentation requirements, as the data can be sent to the appropriate database files.