Quarries & mines embracing on-board truck scale technology

Advanced on-board truck scale technology is helping optimise quarry and mining operations across all key regional markets. Kevin Hill, an expert in this area, who provides technical and marketing expertise to the sales and service teams at Quality Scales Unlimited in Byron, California, discusses the advantages of cutting-edge truck scale solutions. Quarries and mines that carry and transport payloads need efficient and accurate weighing solutions because the precise determination of the weight that is being
Ancillary Equipment / February 3, 2017
Kevin Hill
Kevin Hill is an expert on on-board truck scale solutions for quarries and mines

Advanced on-board truck scale technology is helping optimise quarry and mining operations across all key regional markets. Kevin Hill, an expert in this area, who provides technical and marketing expertise to the sales and service teams at Quality Scales Unlimited in Byron, California, discusses the advantages of cutting-edge truck scale solutions.

Quarries and mines that carry and transport payloads need efficient and accurate weighing solutions because the precise determination of the weight that is being carried is a crucial metric for these industries. This is why an increasing number of quarries and mining companies are employing on-board truck scales for improved efficiency, increased throughput and reduced overhead costs. These on-board truck scales are custom-designed for payload management in mines so they can easily withstand heavy loads and facilitate accurate measurement of weights in much less time. They can be easily integrated onto the chassis of the load bearing equipment, hauling vehicles and trucks and measure payload without needing external standalone weighing systems. Apart from haul trucks and wheeled loaders, on-board truck scales are also compatible with skid loader scales and conveyor belt weighing solutions.

Different Types of Truck Scales & Their Advantages

<%$Linker:2External<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary />000oLinkExternalTruck scalesVisit www.scalesu.com websitefalsehttp://www.scalesu.com/products/truck-scales/falsefalse%> that are not designed for use in quarries and mines cannot withstand the heavy-duty loads and break down, rendering operations inefficient and inviting expenses. This is why when it comes to ensuring successful mining operations, it is important to install truck scales that are primarily designed to serve in a rugged environment. Any quarry or mine that invests in truck scales can leverage several benefits over the traditional models. Below are three different truck scale types that efficiently optimise quarrying and mining operations:

1.            Articulated Truck Scales

Articulated truck scales are designed to support articulated trucks which are used in quarrying and mining operations to reduce the number of trips needed for the transportation of quarrying and mining materials. These truck scales reduce the fuel spend as they remain fitted on the truck and eliminate the need to transport the cargo to a separate standalone scale for weighing. This in turn improves the efficiency of the truck and reduces transportation costs. These scales facilitate accurate measurement of the load while the trucks are in-motion and support multiple communication protocol functionalities for increased efficiency and accuracy.   

2.            Underground Truck Scales

Ideal for use in underground applications, these truck scales efficiently transfer the mining load from one site to another at the underground level. Underground truck scales are highly portable and eliminate the need to lift load from ground up for weighing which in turn makes your operations time-efficient. They feature a robust framework so you don’t need to worry about unexpected disruptions and downtimes in your operations.

3.            Haul Truck Scales

Haul truck scales work great even in the harsh conditions of standard quarrying and mining operations. These scales can be reliably used for regular quarrying and mining tasks like transporting rocks, sand, gravel, dirt and other mining materials. Haul truck scales are heavy-duty and can withstand a huge volume of load carried by the haul trucks. These scales are integrated on-board to facilitate in-motion weighing so the load does not need to be transferred to a standalone weighing system.
All of these truck scales are easy to install and work efficiently with little care and periodic maintenance. They collect accurate data so weighing records are always error-free. They can also be integrated with specialised software for both production and payload management. Truck scales offer advanced throughput for a seamless weighing process and their easy-to-use interface facilitates fast and accurate data input. These scales are further complemented by the fact that they work efficiently in harsh weather conditions and tough environments.

How Quarry & Mining Companies Can Make the Most of On-Board Scale Technology

There are many instances in quarries and mines when weighing from a specific site becomes purely inefficient and inconvenient. This is when robust truck scales come into play. The digital display fitted in the cabin of the vehicle offers easy assessment of weight metrics which minimises supervisory overhead and human errors. Many quarry and mining companies are capitalising on advanced truck scales for optimising large scale operations that use heavy-duty vehicles. These weighing solutions vary from on-board <%$Linker:2External<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary />000oLinkExternalconveyor belt scalesVisit aggregatesandminingtoday.com falsehttp://aggregatesandminingtoday.com/featured-story/18988/0falsefalse%> to wheel loaders and each system is designed for different applications in quarries and mines. On-board truck scales save tremendous time and effort because of their ability to directly weigh materials from any vehicle or equipment. This eliminates redundant efforts invested in the payload process and minimises downtimes.

These scales are compatible for use with conveyor belts and quarrying and mining equipment so they can be easily integrated with a number of vehicles like backhoes, rail cars and haul trucks. Apart from quarries and mines they can also be used for weighing agricultural produce. They facilitate real-time tracking of loads while vehicles are in transit due to which the time invested in weighing payloads is significantly minimised. A <%$Linker:2External<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary />000oLinkExternaltruck scale installationVisit www.scalesu.com website falsehttp://www.scalesu.com/essential-considerations-for-truck-scale-installation/falsefalse%> enables mining companies and quarries to:

•             Increase efficiency & throughput
•             Save time and money  
•             Reduce fuel spend
•             Eliminate operational disruptions
•             Improve productivity
•             Enjoy cost savings
•             Ensure Safety  

While you can still get your job done using ordinary truck scales, the productivity is sure to suffer significantly. Your conventional practices can increase your operational expenses over the time and your labourers may end up spending most of their time doing tasks that are less significant. To get around this whole scenario, it is recommended to install a truck scale that can turn all your tedious weighing tasks into a total breeze.

How to Integrate Truck Scales on Your Vehicles & Quarrying & Mining Equipment   

Integrating truck scales with mining equipment and haul trucks is neither tedious nor time-consuming if the job is done in the right manner by an expert. Hiring an experienced technician to help you with the truck scale installation will ensure an efficient and effective integration. On-board truck scales can be permanently installed for anytime use.

If you intend to use on-board truck scales with conveyor belts or other quarrying and mining equipment, you should be able to find a wide-range of robust and reliable weighing solutions that are both reasonably priced and user-friendly to operate.  

The Bottom Line

When it comes to executing operations successfully, resources demand much more than your traditional truck scales. The easiest way to keeping your operations from becoming inefficient and expensive is by using quarrying and mining-specific truck scales. If you are still relying on cumbersome conventional weighing solutions that require frequent calibration, then you are wasting your time and money on inaccurate readings and heavy wear and tear. Avoid these drawbacks by investing in reliable, precise and durable truck scales. These highly-advanced and feature-rich solutions will surely optimise your quarrying and mining operations from the moment they are installed.

Kevin Hill heads up the marketing efforts and provides technical expertise to the sales and service teams at 8568 Quality Scales Unlimited in Byron, California. He enjoys everything mechanical and electronic, computers, the internet and spending time with family.

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