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.

Although the internet is becoming the media of choice for sending out advertisements and bulk mailings, traditional postal service is still often used to send out advertising fliers, glossy postcards, or product samples. When a company chooses to send out a bulk mailing, it can pay a special bulk postage rate to the United States Postal Service. However, in order to get this special price, the company has certain responsibilities. It must sort the mail according to postal rules, report the weight of one single piece of mail and a batch of mail, and then report the total number of pieces that are being sent out.

Digital parts counting scales are the perfect solution to a business’s mailing needs. This electronic scale first calculates the weight of each piece of mail. The operator places a known number of pieces on the scale and enters the number of pieces that are being weighed. This industrial scale then divides the total weight by the number of pieces to calculate a piece weight. The scale is then switched into counting mode. When all of the pieces of mail are placed on it, the electronic scale divides the total weight by the weight of a single piece to calculate the total number of pieces being mailed.

When sending out particularly large bulk mailings, it is important to have a scale that has a large capacity while also having a high enough resolution to be able to accurately determine the weight of one single piece of mail. Ultra-precision SAW scales, a new technology developed and manufactured by Arlyn Scales, are a good example of a large-capacity, high resolution digital scale. A SAW scale with a 100 lb. capacity has a resolution of .001, allowing for a very precise count of a very large number of pieces of mail.

It seems quite obvious that it is necessary to accurately measure all of the ingredients that must be mixed together to manufacture any formulation. What is not as obvious is the level of accuracy that must be attained. This, of course, is highly dependent on the material being formulated. Some types of mixtures are, by their nature, not very accurate and standard. This may be the case with agricultural products and animal feed mixtures. Others may need higher accuracy, but these levels may be easily achieved by a regular digital scale. Standard industrial scales can provide accuracy as good as 1/10 of 1%. Many chemicals, cleaning solutions, foods, and other mixtures easily fall within this range. This allows the typical bench scales to be used for smaller quantities, or floor scales, platform scales or drum scales to be used for larger batches.

But this level of accuracy is not suitable for certain special formulations. Pharmaceuticals may need greater accuracy. Another field which typically requires extremely high precision weighing is the formulation of paints. While there are no safety issues here, the mixture of pigments and other ingredients must be exceedingly precise in order to satisfy the color sensitivity of the human eye. Even very small discrepancies between two batches of paint can be instantly identified when they are displayed side by side. This type of specialty weighing calls for ultra precision scales with accuracy ranges that are ten to twenty times better than regular industrial scales.

Arlyn Scales offers a range of ultra high precision digital scales known as SAW scales, or Surface Acoustic Wave scales. There is a range of bench scales with capacities ranging from 10 lb up to 100 lb. A second range of high capacity SAW scales range in capacity from 200 lb up to 500 lb. These may be used as bench scales, or alternatively as platform scales or drum scales. Paint mixing becomes a much more accurate process with this type of weighing instrument.