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Calibration (which is usually re-calibration) is certainly necessary if high precision weighing is being done and the nature of the project is such that verification information is required.  In truth, any time you want to be sure the scale (a tool) is functioning as well as it can, before you start to use it calibrate it.

The modern crane scale has as its heart a strain gauge, usually of high capacity.  The strain gauge is very well suited to this application as it provides adequate resolution and accuracy for the application in almost unlimited capacities.
    These scales can be thought of as strain gauges with their necessary electronics and display attached to them, all suspended between the crane hook and its replacement hook attached to the lower portion of the strain gauge.  The hanging weight, then, is passed directly from the lower hook (on the lower portion of the strain gauge) to the strain gauge and then to the crane hook (via a shackle or equivalent attached to the upper portion of the strain gauge).

Platform scales are widely used in a great variety of industrial weighing situation.  One very common application is weighing packages as they are readied for shipment.  These scales get their name from the large flat weighing surface which they present for loading the objects to be weighed.  In most cases the weighing platform sits on the floor and the display is separated from the platform by a vertical column that raises the display to a more comfortable height for the user.

There are a variety of different weighing units used in different parts of the world.  The two most popular in the U.S. and Europe are the metric unit, the gram (which includes the kilogram, Kg, the gram, g, and the milligram, mg) and the Imperial system unit, the pound (which includes the pound, lb, and the ounce, oz).  In the Imperial system there are 16 ounces to a pound.

There is an incredibly wide range of activities that require the use of balances.  Scales for use in the trucking industry have to weigh tons.  Pharmaceutical balances for activities like compounding, on the other hand, have to have .001g accuracy.  In this article, we are going to take a look at scales with 1 g accuracy.

Thousands of years ago, the most elaborate tool known to man was a rock.  Rocks were very easy to use, and they were just lying around all over the place.  
Then someone got the bright idea to lash a sharpened rock to a stick for hunting.  And thus the era of tools began.  And the tools have done nothing but get more complex ever since!  Modern machinery can contain dozens, hundreds or even thousands of parts.  

The world would be a very different place without the invention of the balance. The ability to accurately determine weight and mass has had an incalculable effect on the forward progress of mankind. One major subset of the balance family is the platform balance. Let’s take a moment and explore the world of platform balances.

There are a wide range of uses for scales and balances, everything from weighing small animals to weighing airplanes. Businesses and organizations who wish to obtain scales need to know that the products they’re interested in will meet their standards without breaking or malfunctioning. But what are these standards? Who sets them? And how can purchasers be certain that the scales they’re considering conform to them?

For many of the past hundred years, methods of weighing remained essentially unchanged. A pharmacist in 1980 would, in many ways, being doing the exact same thing as a pharmacist in 1910. However, the past several years have brought changes to the manner in which analytical balances are used. The onset of the computer revolution in the 1980s has increased the range of abilities of balances.

When teaching young people about science, the use of an educational balance can be a great asset. There are a variety of experiments that can be performed to illustrate concepts of weight, mass and density to students.

Over the past hundred years, America has seen an almost revolutionary transformation. The quality of the lives of American citizens has expanded dramatically in every area, from health care to entertainment. What has enabled us to reap these rewards?

Precision weighing in the laboratory requires a good basic understanding of the fundamental principles of weighing. The following is a discussion of the basic requirements.