Ok, you’ve just been named General Manager for your employer. You are now the head honcho, numero uno, the operations manager, etc… etc…. in other words the buck stops with you!
One of your first tasks is to update your location with the best scales and weighing equipment that you can find. So, what are you going to purchase? Will your first step be to scour amazon or ebay for the cheapest scales known to man? I would hope not since that would likely only be a temporary fix and once those items break within a year, you will be right back online searching again for some quality scales and weighing equipment!
Instead, I would hope that you would put some thought into what are the best scales that will provide years of service and maybe a few features that will help your employer be more productive & profitable.
So in this entry, I’m going to give you some free buying advice. This advice is based on several decades of dealing with scales and weighing equipment.
What Shipping Scale Would I Purchase?
I hate to be obvious but if you’ve read any of our work over the years then you realize when it comes to shipping scales we are big fans of the Mettler Toledo BC60 shipping scale. We have used it or it’s predecessor the PS60, for many years while shipping our own boxes. If you’re shipping FedEx or UPS packages then you probably need to purchase this scale for shipping boxes.
The scale can send the box weight right into the UPS Worldship software. Also if you’re shipping A LOT of boxes everyday then you probably need to take a look at some dimensional measuring solutions as well since the freight carriers are not just looking at box or pallet weights. They are looking at BOTH the weight and dimensions of the boxes / pallets. The ROI on some of these dim weight measuring devices can be very quick.
What Floor Scale Would I Purchase for my Warehouse?
If you’re shipping 48″ x 40″ pallets then you probably need a 4×4 or 5×5 floor scale. You don’t want to be “guessing” pallet weights. You can even get a floor scale with ramp as a complete solution. As we’ve mentioned in the past, floor scale prices can vary widely depending on who manufactured the scale platform and the overall quality and durability of the scale.
Now, if you’re just weighing a couple of pallets here and there, you can probably purchase one of our cheap floor scales. However, if the floor scale is going to be an important part of your business, then you either need to purchase several of our cheaper floor scales or perhaps buy one high quality floor scale such as the B-Tek 4-Square.
We’ve mentioned this in the past but basically the reason one floor scale is around $1000 and the other is around $3000 is usually about the construction of the scale platform. Cheaper 4×4 platform scales are usually anywhere from 50 to 100 pounds lighter than “industrial” tough platform scales like the BTek Clydesdale. Now is that ~ 80 LB difference worth a couple of thousand dollars? That’s up to you. Depending on your industry and potential downtime, the extra cost may very well be worth it.
Honestly, I’ve seen customers buy a quality floor scale like the Clydesdale. I’ve also seen customers buy two or three of the lesser scales and then repair them as needed. So… if I have the money and the scale is an important part of my business, I’m going to buy the higher quality item like the Clydesdale or the Rice Lake Roughdeck. If I don’t have the budget, then I might buy a couple of the lighter weight IN7620 scales – understanding that I likely will be needing them repaired more often.
What Other Scales Should I Buy for My Business?
If you keep nuts, bolts, screws, washers etc… in bins on your shelves then you probably need to look at one of our parts counting scales. These devices can save you A LOT of time and these scales count your inventory very accurately for you. As for which counting scale I would buy? There’s a lot of choices available. To keep it simple, if I had a range of items that I need to count, then I’d probably purchase a 6 lb or 12 lb capacity counting scale for my lightweight items like rubber o-rings or resistors. Then, I’d buy a 60 lb or 100 lb counting scale for my larger bolts and screws. I would probably look at the Intelligent IDC series or the Ohaus Ranger Count 4000 to start with.
Many businesses benefit from having a versatile bench scale that sits near the shipping department. I’m referring to something like a 20″ x 20″ weighing platform with anywhere from a 200 pound to 600 pound weighing capacity. You’d be surprised how often a scale like this comes in handy for everything from shipping odd sizes boxes to helping keep accurate track of employee weight loss (or gains). I’d probably check out the Brecknell or Weighsouth line of bench scales.
If you’re mailing out letters that go beyond the standard 1 ounce variety then it can be a good idea to invest in a low capacity postal scale as well. We offer several different types of these scales for mailing letters via the USPS. I don’t deal with these very much so I would have to do some research on my own before I made a true recommendation.
Final Thoughts
I hope this “what scales would I purchase” entry has helped you think about some of the choices and options that are available in the world of weighing scales. We didn’t mention a lot of scale brands in this entry. It is probably better to stick with the top brands if you can. Sure it may cost a little more but those brands usually equal better quality than some overseas brand that you’ve never heard of.
One other thing to consider is technology options that are available like printing capability or capturing the weight data on a USB drive. Don’t be afraid to discuss some of these options with your local scale company as well. Sure, we would like to make the sale on this website but in many cases your local scale company can actually provide you with some great individualized service and service after the sale as well.