When it comes to selecting the right weigh scale for your mining operations, to say it’s worth its weight in gold is an understatement! Mining companies are turning to onsite industrial weighing options for a few reasons:
- Increases production by helping you adhere to the target payload range.
- Improves the ROI by reducing losses and increasing efficiency by delivering the right information to the right people in a timely manner.
- Helps with payload validation to reduce issues caused by overloading. Overloading can cause structural damage, increase fuel usage, decrease tire life, and increase wear on a vehicle’s components.
- Reduces operation time by decreasing overloading, as every time a truck is overloaded it must be unloaded and corrected which wastes time and money.
- Reduces costs and processing time associated with having materials measured offsite.
Now that we know why so many companies are making the leap of purchasing scales for their onsite operation, you might be asking what type of scales are best for these types of jobs.
Weighing materials onsite makes good business sense for many mining companies, even though they now have to deal with additional equipment to maintain onsite.
Mines are among the most extreme conditions any type of equipment has to endure. Not only is mining equipment located in an extremely dirty environment, but the materials can be rough as well.
In addition, mines are often located in remote locations meaning any downtime could mean hours or even days of delay. That’s why selecting the right type of scale is critical to stand up to these extreme conditions, so we’ve put together our top 3 recommendations:
1. Railcar Scale
In mining, like many industries, time is money. Many companies choose railcar scales because they can load up the carts and the scale can weigh them while in motion.
The ability to continually weigh materials while physically transporting them to their next destination means you can save time in addition to increasing your daily output.
Railcar scales can be designed to withstand the severe mining environment while keeping track of outgoing materials for revenue estimates. This weighing solution can be customized for underground or surface mining.
2. Tank and Hopper Scales
Another consideration when selecting a scale for your mining company is the materials you are mining. If the product you are mining is measured or stored in a tank or hopper rather than truck or wagon loads, you’ll need a specific type of scale.
Hopper scales are generally used to weigh bulk products fed into the hopper scale from above by gravity or by conveyor, while tank scales are specifically for weighing tanks.
3. Truck Weigh Scale
If you are mining and weighing your materials on the surface, you will need a tough truck weigh scale that can handle extreme loads. Not only are the conditions harsh, but the surface mining industry has the added pressure of needing to be as efficient as possible in order to appease the high demand for minerals.
Truck weigh scales are ideal because you can weigh and transport the materials in the same load, saving you time and money. These scales are designed for near-constant use, so they are robust enough to stand up to the high demands of the job.
Truck weigh scales can even be customized if your job requires underground mining.
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If you have any questions about what scale would suit your mining company’s needs best, contact the experts at Active Scale today!
