Is my new scale calibrated and ready to use?  If you are purchasing a scale from us and you are located in central NC then there is probably a 99.9% chance we have tested and calibrated your scale. However, if you are or have purchased a scale from us and it is being shipped to you from the factory then that is a different situation.

In fact, we are asked this question quite often…. Do your scales come calibrated? I would say probably at least 95% of the time the answer is yes, they have been calibrated. The calibration is what we refer to as factory calibration. Most new scales are calibrated at the scale manufacturer or “factory” location. 

The vast majority of our suppliers calibrate the scales before the end user starts weighing.  But, that factory calibration can vary. We have some suppliers who have the scales calibrated overseas. So, they are not calibrated in the US. As you probably know, a lot of rough handling and bumps and tumbles can occur between the manufacturers location and yours. Some suppliers also charge extra fees to calibrate their scales in the US.

Many scales these days are manufactured overseas and the scales are tested and basically run through QC before final packaging. So your scale will be calibrated at that point. However, that doesn’t guarantee it will be correct once it’s shipped halfway around the world. You also will not typically receive any calibration documentation from this testing either. In fact, many of the scale manufactures located in the US don’t like providing written calibration reports either.  

So, you may be wondering, what can I do?  If you’re purchasing scales online, you really need to have your scales tested and calibrated once you put them into service in the location where you plan to use them. You will need to contact a reputable local scale company in your area to do this. They should have certified test weights.  At that point a calibration certificate or report should be able to be generated that is actually valid. 

So, do new scales come calibrated?  Basically, if you’re one of our local customers and you purchase a scale from us, your scale calibration should be taken care of and you will likely be able to find it online using our best in class software. If you’re purchasing a scale online, you need to verify with the sales department what type of calibration and/or documentation you need. Questions?  Call us at (919) 776-7737.

I think most scale buyers don’t think about a scale cart when they’re looking to purchase a bench scale. I also don’t think a lot of scale sellers think to offer a mobile scale cart as an option either.

Adding a mobile scale cart to your bench scale purchase can be a great choice. In today’s article we are going to go into greater detail regarding the benefits of adding a mobile scale cart to your bench scale purchase.

What is a Mobile Scale Cart?

Normally customers order a counter-top bench scale with capacity ranges of anywhere from 5 lb to 100 lb and they typically place these scales on a counter top.  The scale platform sizes are usually between 12″ x 12″ and 20″ x 20″ or so.  And in many cases these counter top weighing locations work out just fine and the scale delivers great accuracy and everyone is happy.  But what if you could buy a specialized mobile cart that the scale sits on top of?

The mobile scale cart is basically a portable cart that is designed by the scale manufacturer to fit certain scales and to easily allow you to move an industrial scale from place to place in your warehouse. These mobile scale carts are ideal for customers who need to have a weighing device in multiple locations in their business. 

The scale carts are manufactured with a painted steel construction. Sometimes a stainless steel version can be made available as well. Often a couple of the support columns will have swivel casters that can lock in place.

You might be thinking, well I can just buy some cheap cart from Uline and do this…. Well the beauty of the mobile scale cart is they also include other features sometimes like adjustable legs which allow you to change the overall heights of the cart as well as a column to mount the weight indicator. For example, the Rice Lake BenchMark MSC-20 mobile scale cart features two swivel, locking casters and two rigid casters and is designed to easily transport a counting scale and secondary scale anywhere you need to place it in your facility.

Benefits of a Mobile Scale Cart

Sure you can try to physically carry a bench scale all over your facility. However, all it takes is one mistake and now you have a broken scale or perhaps a load cell cable that has been ripped out of a weight indicator. The smart choice would be to place the scale system on a mobile scale cart and transport the scale where ever you need it. You can probably even place a power strip on the platform safely or maybe even place a label printer on there as well for maximum efficiency. 

We often talk about portable scales, but most of the time we think of the scales themselves being portable with carrying handles built in or perhaps wheels inside the scale platform.  We don’t often think about mobile scale carts that can also provide true portability. For example, the Rice Lake BenchMark MSC-10 mobile scale cart features two swivel, locking casters and two rigid casters. It also features adjustable height with telescoping tube designed legs and a 18-inch indicator stand for mounting weight indicators like the CW-90X, 480 Plus, 482 Plus, 680 Synergy, & 380 Synergy.  As you can see from this indicator list, you could use this cart for basic weighing, over/under check weighing, or even parts counting.

Today we focused most of our attention on portable bench scale systems. But we also have many different ways to make floor scales portable as well. Things like portability frames with wheels, scale carts, floor scale portability frames with forklift channels, etc… If you need more information on our mobile scale carts be sure to contact the sales department by completing the RFQ form or calling (919) 776-7737.