Category Archives: General

New Cardinal 190A Scale Indicator

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If there was an award for the coolest display on a digital weight indicator in the scale industry, the winner would probably be the Cardinal 190 indicator. The display can show weights in red, yellow, green and a couple of other colors too. Recently, Cardinal introduced a new version of the 190 designed for axle weighing. The 190A is the perfect choice for the 760 series axle scales from Cardinal.

The USA-made Cardinal Scale 190A easily factors axle weights by pressing the PRINT key for each successive axle weight, or it can function in traffic control auto mode sensing each truck axle’s weight when connected to a remote display such as the SB500 with traffic signals and a printer such as the P150. Traffic control mode allows the truck driver to never have to leave the truck during the axle weighing process which speeds up weighing operations.

Designed for non-legal-for-trade portable axle weighing applications such as with Cardinal’s CWL-40 and 760 series mobile wheel weighers, the USA-made 190A weight indicator features axle weighing software, traffic control mode to automatically capture accumulative axle weights without the driver having to leave the truck (when connected to a remote display with traffic lights and printer), two RS232 serial ports (for printer and remote display), optional rechargeable lithium ion battery, capacitive touch keys, and IP69K-rated wash-down enclosure (the highest protection rating possible).

The 1-inch/25-mm high backlit LCD is visible in direct sunlight and may be set to any one of 6 different customizable settings. The 190A weight indicator features 3 watertight gland connectors, quick-connect power connector, and one ID. Continue reading →

What Preventative Maintenance Is Required For Truck Scales Used In Metal Recycling Businesses?

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Let’s say you purchased this heavy duty truck scale for your metal recycling business. Now that you have got this truck scale, what preventative routine maintenance is required for weighing scales employed in recycling applications?

Typical preventive servicing requires washing out beneath the scale deck using a high-pressure hose for routine cleaning. With your Cardinal EPR truck scale, bumper bolts and checkrods will need to be tweaked every quarter on account of expansion and contraction in the scale caused by temperature changes. That is one reason why it is a good idea to set up your truck scales for quarterly scale service agreement check ups. With this agreement in place, you can save on labor and mileage charges and keep your scale adjusted, calibrated, and working throughout the year.

Cardinal Truck Scale Load Cells

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SCA Series Stainless Steel Compression Load Cells from Cardinal are ideal for multiple load cell applications including truck scales, railroad track scales, and heavy-duty tank weighing systems.

The SCA series are environmentally-sealed for absolute water protection. Quality, capacities range from 50,000 lb/22,680 kg to 200,000 lb/90,720 kg, waterproof, NTEP and OIML certified. Learn more about the cell by clicking here.

Also, DB Series Stainless Steel Double-Ended Shear Beam Load Cells from Cardinal are available. These waterproof stainless steel load cells are environmentally-sealed for absolute water protection, providing a barrier against corrosive, caustic, and wet environments. They are ideal for multiple load cell applications such as truck scales and heavy-duty tank weighing systems.

Each cell is furnished with 32 ft/10 m of integral multi-conductor cable secured by a strain relief seal. Capacities range from 50,000 lb/22,680 kg to 75,000 lb/34,000 kg, waterproof, NTEP and OIML certified. You can read more about the item by clicking this link.

How Much Does A 70 Foot Long Truck Scale 120,000 lb cost?

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The following is a very popular question we hear all the time from various people in different industries. In this example we’ll use recycling but it could apply to anyone.

Now really, how much should a metal recycler expect to spend on buying a new truck scale?

Expense is really dependent on whether the recycling center is replacing an older pre-existing truck scale or if it’s a brand new installation. Installation and foundation labor is going to be different in each and every situation. Cost also varies from area to area.

Basically, you will have to pay for the cost to do the foundation or pit. You will have to pay to have the crane lift the scale off the delivery truck. You will have to pay for the scale, the digital weight indicator, and the ticket printer. You will also have to pay the freight costs to ship the scale from the manufacturer to your location. As you can see above, there is no way to give you an exact cost because any of the information above can vary from job to job.

The best advice is to contact a local scale company in your area who sells truck scales and also does regular service on them. The company also should have certified test weights, a weight cart and test truck. They should also keep replacement parts on the shelf in case one of your parts breaks unexpectedly. If you follow this advice at least if something does fail you can contact your local company for fast service and limited down time.

OTR Series From Rice Lake Now Suitable For Livestock Weighing

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Rice Lake Weighing Systems was recently granted an amendment to its NTEP Certificate of Conformance for the SURVIVOR OTR Series of above ground truck scales. The amendment reduces the scales minimum division value (emin) from the industry standard 20 pounds to 10 pounds, making the SURVIVOR OTR suitable for not only vehicle weighing, but high-dollar applications such as livestock and scrap-metal weighing. The improved resolution is essential where valuable commodities are being weighed and Rice Lake truck scales now offer a competitive advantage in those cases.

The new certification applies to Rice Lake entire OTR Series, including steel and concrete decks and pit or pitless grain dump models, in standard widths up to 16.5 feet and standard lengths up to 160 feet. The SURVIVOR OTR is also now available with racks and gates for livestock containment needs.

SnapStream vs iCan

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Scale junction box

                Snapstream versus iCan

Cardinal Scale’s USA-made SnapStream and iCan digital scale systems offer a variety of mutual and diverse features and benefits for your weighing applications. To help further educate potential customers on which type of system is best suited for the different scenarios you may have, we have developed a brief comparison chart that lists SnapStream’s and iCan’s divergent features side by side. This comparison guide should help explain more about which system is more appropriate for each installation scenario.

For instance, SnapStream features load cell diagnostic capabilities from the indicator, but not from the junction box and the indicator; while iCan does offer this feature. Also, when wireless is required, it is much more economical to use SnapStream. If wireless is not required, iCan offers more benefits. Other topics such as connectivity, compatibility, system range, options, and installation settings are addressed in the comparison guide.

Inaccurate Tare Weights in Vehicle Weighing

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This summary (link was taken down on nist website) was done several years ago but it brings up some good points regarding checking truck scales for accuracy and storing tare weights for trucks.

The concept of storing a tare weight for a particular truck sounds like a great idea and a wonderful time saver but as you can see from the presentation, it can lead to some very inaccurate weights.

Stored Tare
Stored and recalled from memory in digital indicators and computers.
Charts with truck-id and tare weight taped to the wall.
Marked on vehicle or driver information.

What Changes Tare Weight?
Driver/Passengers on-off truck
Repairs or modifications to vehicle (e.g., new tires, paint, welding etc.)
Tools, material handling equipment, personal effects.
Fuel and other fluid levels.
Mud, dirt and others (e.g., product retained in bed of dump truck).

Blue Blanket Truck Scale Warranty

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It doesn’t matter if we are looking to buy a computer or a treadmill, we all want to buy a product that has a solid warranty. Often times that warranty will only cover the parts that might break, leaving you to pay for the extra expenses like labor and travel mileage. Well, Avery Weigh-Tronix has now added an optional warranty which will be ideal for many truck scale customers. They call it the Blue Blanket truck scale warranty and for just a small investment, the optional 5-Year Blue Blanket Truck Scale Warranty can be the perfect choice for a customer to protect their investment.

The new ‘blue blanket’ warranty option can really add another dimension of long-term value to your AWTX truck scales. If you were to add this additional protection to your truck scale, the customer now has an option to use scheduled preventative maintenance to extend their warranty. This is great since these days some bid specifications call for a 5-year comprehensive warranty and this option fulfills that requirement.

This ‘blue blanket’ includes all weighbridge components and indicator plus travel and labor at standard rates. The part number for the blue blanket warranty is AWT97-501690.

New Precast Concrete Scale Now Available

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The Cardinal Harvester series precast concrete scales offer an economical approach to truck weighing for farms. The Harvester is a fully-electronic truck scale featuring factory poured concrete decks for above-ground, low-profile weighing. Incorporating the latest in patent-pending concrete composition with high tensile strength and optimal deck weight, the Harvester is designed for farms with 3,000 acres or less. Cardinal offers single-source convenience and quality construction utilizing stainless steel model CBC compression load cells.

Designed for light-duty agricultural weighing, the NTEP certified Harvester series of vehicle scales are the farmers choice for all types of vehicle weighing from planting to harvest. The Harvesters low-profile design allows direct access to all scale components for ease of service. Clearance underneath the Harvester truck scale’s weighbridge is 7.5 inches from the top of the pier to the bottom of the deck which allows plenty of room for washouts and easy access to the load cells. Bumper bolts allow for easy maintenance of the truck scale. Lateral checking is placed in the center of the scale to reduce bumper bolt adjustments due to expansion and contraction of the weighbridge from temperature change.

Rodents Least Favorite Load Cell Cable

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For scales requiring additional pest control, a uniquely coated load cell cable is now available. The EL147RP Plus, the first of its kind from Rice Lake, comes with an additional chemical layer that is distasteful to rodents.

A traditional braided copper exterior is a strong deterrent, but with the extra layer, appropriately named chemical coating, users will receive the added benefit of a repellent. The chemical layer is not a poison, but rather a deterrent that protects the cable integrity from potentially damaging pests. Click here to learn more about the Rice Lake EL147RP Plus Rodent Protection Cable.