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Check the Pockets Before you buy a truck scale

Cherries in Motion Tree to box in minutes

Rig It Right Four rules for riggers

A mAgAzine And ReFeRenCe TOOL FOR THe WeigHing indUSTRY / WinTeR 2013 • iSSUe 2 • vOL. 9

2 RiCe LAKe mAgAzine | www.ricelake.com

We earn it.

Our greatest asset and differentiator as a company is plain and simple: great customer service.

Our people make it easier and more pleasant to do business with us. When customers call us, a friendly voice answers the phone—as quickly as possible. (Our goal is to answer every call on the first or second ring.)

In the short article on page 16, “When load cells fly,” you will see an example of how far we will go to get our equipment in your hands when you need it.

In these pages you also will read about our new Rice Lake company, Measurement Systems International (MSI) and their weighing equipment for crane operators and riggers. On page 14, “Check the Pockets,” Bill Murphy, our heavy capacity director, gives you a surefire way to compare truck scales before you buy. In all, we give you 28 pages dedicated to weighing technology and interesting new application stories.

We also give you our thanks for your business. Last year, 2012, was our best year ever. Looking forward, we see strengthening relationships with all of our customers in the new year.

We will continue to earn your commitment to us.

Sincerely,

Steve M Parkman Chief Operating Officer

Editorial Staff

melanie Al Faraj, Technical Writer

Tamala Anderson, designer

Cheryl Aune, Literature manager

matt davis, marketing Specialist

Jessica de la Cruz, Writer

micah Fauske, designer

James Hanson, Web development Specialist

melissa Hjelle, marketing Specialist

megan Katcher, marketing Coordinator

nicole King, marketing Coordinator

Rita Lenzen, marketing Coordinator

Katy madden, Story editor

Kelly musil, Catalog manager

Caleb Olson, Technical Writer, Reporter

Carrie Popple, Technical Writer

Pat Ranfranz, marketing director

Hannah Rechsteiner, designer

Tina Slayton, marketing Specialist

Stacy White, marketing Specialist

Kristina zengaffinen, Senior designer

Steve Parkman, Chief Operating OfficerRice Lake Weighing Systems

T H i S i S S U e

www.ricelake.com | RiCe LAKe mAgAzine 3

RICE LAKE MAGAZINE

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RICE LAKE MAGAZINE • Winter 2013 • Issue 2 • Vol. 9

Inside

page 4 What’s New Rice Lake presents the latest weighing equipment and technology page 6 Rig It Right Four Advantages of Using the mSi-7300 dynamometer page 10 Cherries

in Motion motoWeigh® generates quick ROi for end-users page 14 Check the Pockets

Comparing truck scales page 17 Coil Scale Ingenuity Steel manufacturer’s custom coil scale

increases efficiency and safety, and reduces cost page 18 The Science of Silos

A look at SYCSA’s impressive Silo R & d center page 22 The Winner’s Circle The 920i®

indicator/controller, SURvivOR® OTR truck scale, and Rice Lake load cells page 25 A Cut Above

Rice Lake’s majorSlice™ commercial slicers take a lead role in delis page 26 Rice Lake Scales

Help Break World Records dependable, repeatable accuracy convinces judges

Find us on Facebook: facebook.com/

ricelakeweighingsystems

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T H i S i S S U e

An ISO 9001 registered company © 2013 Rice Lake Weighing Systems


New weighingsolutions

LOad ceLL

Wiring Guide App for your mobile devicesJust announced, our popular Load Cell Wiring Guide is now available as a mobile application for smartphones, tablets and PCs.

Verify the signal, excitation, and sense wire colors of almost every industrial load cell brand and model—at the touch of a button! The app will be available in early 2013 from your device’s app store, but you can find it online right now at ricelake.com/wireapp. ▪

New baTcherS aNd buLk-weIghINg FILLerS

920i® Flexweigh Systems

Check out new multi-ingredient batchers that batch up to four ingredients at dual speed, or eight at single speed. The 201 model Batch-to-Container sequentially fills ingredients into a container up to the scale target weight. The 202 model Batch-to-Hopper & Discharge sequentially fills ingredients up to the target weight; and then discharges into a vessel.

expanded line includes fillers designed for use with limited-capacity hoppers.

For bulk shipping, the model 107 automatically fills and discharges a hopper up to target weight.

For bulk receiving, the model 108 fills and dispenses a hopper until all product is received and accumulates the weight.

Model 109 handles bulk shipping or receiving: switchable modes via operator key switch.

Learn more at ricelake.com/920iflexweigh. ▪

W H AT ’ S n e W


FOr cONveyOrS, SLIdeS, aNd chuTeS

Easy-to-install Motoweigh® Tunnel Metal detector

Material handling and processing takes a safer course with tunnel metal detectors at critical points. This detection equipment is ideal for food, hygiene products, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries.

It is available in sandblasted stainless steel or epoxy paint finish.

Detects free and encapsulated ferrous, stainless steel, aluminum, copper, and brass contaminants and passes requirements for ISO 9000, HAACP, IFS, and BRC quality

inspections—all while protecting machinery from foreign objects.

The touch screen control panel displays maximum information with easy and fast operation. The 5.7" backlit screen is large enough

to display parameter data and protocol contents in a legible format. The oscilloscope function makes signal waves

visible by projecting them onto the display. ▪

Measurement Systems International (MSI), a scale equipment manufacturer based in Seattle, WA, was acquired by Rice Lake Weighing Systems this past April. MSI has been in business since 1977. The MSI line of strain gauge and microprocessor technologies is sold throughout the world. It includes industrial electronic scales, tension dynamometers, load monitoring instrumentation, RF wireless data acquisition and signal processing systems. msiscales.com ▪

Naw® STOpS gNawINg

EL147RP Plus rodent protection cable

The “plus” stands for an added chemical coating that tastes terrible to rodents. EL147RP Plus also sports a tinned-copper over braid for another layer of rodent and abrasion resistance. For heavy radio frequency use areas, EL147RP Plus also delivers superior EMI/RFI protection. ricelake.com/naw ▪

W H AT ’ S n e W


“Crane and rigging accidents can be tracked

back to a collection of events all happening at the same

time. Having the load and/or tension information in hand

helps reduce the risk associated with load handling

and lowers the opportunity for an accident.”

Mike Parnell, president of Industrial Training International

Four advantages of using the

MSI-7300 dynamometer

iTi’s belief is that people have a greatly increased chance of retention

by “seeing, speaking, and doing” all at the same time.

OVER THE PAST quARTER-CENTuRy, INDuSTRIAL TRAINING INTERNATIONAL (ITI) HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED By CLIENTS AND COMPETITORS ALIKE FOR HAVING AN INNOVATIVE AND PIONEERING ATTITuDE TOWARD TRAINING, and for having raised the current levels of instruction for cranes, heavy equipment, and rigging. ITI’s belief is that people have a greatly increased chance of retention by “seeing, speaking, and doing” all at the same time.

ITI is headquartered in Woodland, Washington, and Edmonton, Alberta. Their training centers are located in Woodland, Washington; Memphis, Tennessee; Anchorage, Alaska; and Edmonton, Alberta.

Mike Parnell, president of ITI, says, “We use dynamometers for a host of reasons, but four applications can be especially helpful to the rigger and crane operator. I chose the

Continued on page 8

O n L O C AT i O n

industrial Training international (iTi) has used mSi dynamometers in basic-to-advanced rigging training courses for over 20 years to reinforce the principles of rigging.


The MSI-7300 helps studentsmike Parnell, president of industrial Training international (iTi), has used mSi dynamometers in his basic-to-advanced rigging training courses for over 20 years. He states, “They’re the best tool for reinforcing the principles of rigging when it comes to confirming tensions involved in horizontal and vertical load handling.” Students use the mSi-7300 dynamometer in every training module, both as a safety device and as a tool for verifying the theory taught in class. “The mSi-7300 is like a grading system for the stu-dents— it confirms the theory behind proper rigging.” mike says he chose the mSi-7300 for its lightweight de-sign, large display, RF remote-display capabilities, and industry-leading safety specifications.

Kyle mcKinney, regional sales director for mSi, recently attended iTi’s master Rigger Course. Kyle reports, “There was a common theme during discussion with the instructors—they loved the mSi-8000 RF Remote display with the 7300 dyna-Link 2. during the mobile Crane Lifting module, the instructor placed the remote display in the crane cab. That allowed them to keep an eye on the load weight while also guiding students through their rigging exercises.”

The rigger calculates for the worst-case drifting position, but uses the dyna-Link 2

to ensure that the crew stays within the parameters intended.mike Parnell, president

industrial Training international (iTi)

O n L O C AT i O n

MSI-7300 for its lightweight design, large display, RF Remote Display capabilities, and industry-leading safety specifications.

Mike Parnell observes, “Crane and rig-ging accidents can be tracked back to a collection of events all happening at the same time. Having an accurate and con-tinual readout of sling loading or gross load is a huge help to the riggers and lift director. Having the load and/or tension information in hand helps reduce the risk associated with load handling and lowers the opportunity for an accident.”

chain hoist drifting

During a chain hoist load-drifting activ-ity, the tension readout can help prevent

equipment overload, since the horizontal distance, the horizontal angle, and the elevation are constantly changing. The rigger calculates for the worst-case drift-ing position but uses the Dyna-Link to ensure that he and the crew stay within the intended parameters.

Load up-righting

With the MSI-8000 RF Remote Display, a Dyna-Link is very useful in a load up-righting event. Using an overhead crane, riggers often have to stand a load up from a laydown position. By using a Dyna-Link from the crane hook, the tension will generally lessen as the rigger hoists and trolleys to accommodate the load tilt-up. By observing the tension

Rig it Right continued from page 6


Test engineers, crane operators, riggers, surveyors, and staging professionals who want to rig it right depend on MSI-7300. Through advanced technology of the new MSI ScaleCoreTM, a highly integrated weight-processing unit with 24 bit A/D conversion, Dyna-Link 2 provides new and improved performance features.

Long-range viewing is enhanced by a large five-digit, 1.22 inch (31 mm) LCD with resolution settings up to 5,000 divisions and pre-cision accuracy over a wide range of capacities. Peak digital processing with low power consump-tion provides up to 200 hours of operation from standard flashlight batteries during typical use.

The MSI-8000 RF Remote Display interfaces with MSI Weighing Systems by incorporating the MSI ScaleCore weight-processing unit; the MSI-8000 RF Remote Display communicates with the MSI-7300 Dyna-Link 2 and the MSI-3460 Challenger 3. The compact, handheld indicator provides remote scale control

capabilities and a large five-digit, 1.25 inch (32 mm) liquid crystal display. The user-friendly keypad includes Power, Zero, Tare, Print, and two configurable function keys.

The MSI-8000 interfaces to peripheral devices including printers, PCs, and scoreboards, and is integrated via a combination RS-232 serial and charging port. Optimum digital processing

with low power consumption provides up to 24 hours of continuous operation from an integrated lithium ion battery. Anticipated useful RF range is up to 100 feet for line-of-sight applications. ▪

The MSI-7300 dyna-Link 2 digital tension dynamometer is a trusted tool

mSi-7300 dyna-Link 2

mSi-8000 RF Remote display

O n L O C AT i O n

as it lessens, the crew can align a step-block in a timely manner. A step-block or large wooden timber is used to create a new tipping axis. This helps prevent load “flopping” when the center of gravity passes the tilt-up corner.

disassembly and demolition

A third valuable place to use a Dyna-Link is during disassembly or demolition work. If a rigging crew knows that a motor and gear box on a bolted and grouted base weighs 4,500 pounds, then the Dyna-Link can be placed between the crane hook and the load rigging to help prevent overload to the equipment. Sometimes the align-ment rods or cement grout underneath the load’s base are not sufficiently sepa-rated from the base. In effect the base is still secured to the building’s floor. The Dyna-Link will provide a live tension readout to the rigging crew. If the value in tension exceeds the known weight, the crew will need to find ways to separate the base from its mounting location (by jack hammer, concrete saw, cutting torch, hydraulic spreader jack, or other means). The photo at left shows a Dyna-Link be-tween the hoist hook and the rigging.

Training and demonstration

A crane-hook-suspended Dyna-Link can be a helpful tool for training crane opera-tors to be “smooth.” With the peak-hold function activated on the Dyna-Link, an operator can be signaled to lift a load, move it horizontally, and lower it to a pre-approved landing point. It is not unusual for the dynamic weight to momentarily peak to a value of 10-50 percent above the known suspended weight. The peak-hold function maintains the highest captured reading on the dynamometer since it was last cleared. If the operator swings (boom crane) or travels (bridge crane) and stops abruptly, the dynamometer can register a very high peak value. It helps the trainer demonstrate to the operator the need to manage the crane speed, acceleration, and deceleration carefully. All of this type of dynamic handling needs to be well within the crane and rigging’s capacity, which is generally less than 25 percent of the allowable rating in its configuration. ▪


As differently sized boxes approach the scale, their bar codes are scanned to reference the correct over/under values stored in the 920i.

O n L O C AT i O n

in motionMotoweigh® generates quick rOI for end users

BY CALEB OLSON

“Before MotoWeigh, I had never seen a product so seamless, especially at the speeds we wanted

to run—240 feet per minute.”Roger Lohrmeyer, programmer for LCE Systems, Inc.

CHERRy SEASON IS CHAOS. STARTING IN MAy, CALIFORNIA CHERRy FARMERS HAVE SIx WEEKS TO HARVEST, PACKAGE, AND SHIP THEIR CHERRIES BEFORE THE WARMTH OF SuMMER SETS IN. With such a small window of time, any kink in the chain of events, from destructive weather to equipment malfunction, can prove to be catastrophic. Most farmers use a third party to pack and ship their product; however, Camera Brothers, located in Stockton, California, undertakes the entire process from growing and picking to packing and shipping.

Patti Azpeitia, controller of Camera Brothers, decided her operation needed an efficiency boost. Looking at the numbers, she estimated approximately 10% of her crop was being given away in overweight boxes. On top of that, product traceability and new barcode regulations were coming into effect—requirements her current equipment could not meet. An upgrade was in order.

LCE Systems, Inc. specializes in the produce industry and had a solution for Camera Brothers. An in-motion checkweigher could integrate into the existing process, but it would need to not only be reliable, but also fast enough to handle the cherry season’s demanding throughput. “Joe [Ehlers] and I were able to visit Rice Lake and demo MotoWeigh,” explains Daniel Cannistraci. “We saw how Rice Lake operates and wanted to work with the highest quality product, so we chose MotoWeigh for the application.” Roger Lohrmeyer, who handles most of LCE’s programming, adds, “Counting scales are common, but in this environment, that scale needs to be able to make a change in a fraction of a second. Before MotoWeigh, I had never seen a product so seamless, especially at the speeds we wanted to run—240 feet per minute. The 920i® is easy to work with and we knew it could handle everything we would throw at it.”

LCE developed a plan to install the MotoWeigh. Camera Brothers was already thinking about remodeling the cherry shed and consulted with LCE to ensure the new equipment would be incorporated in the new shed design. With academic experience in architecture, Joe Ehlers drew up layouts and provided dimensional drawings for the proposed setup. Previously lacking a product delivery system, the shed now has a horseshoe belt to route full cherry boxes to the MotoWeigh. Stacks of boxes on either end of the shed are replaced with an overhead box carousel, con-tinuously passing operators so they are never farther than an arm’s length from the constantly needed supply. LCE’s unique experience allows them to provide much more than scale expertise. “Prior to LCE, we all worked together at a packing facility,” explains Roger. “We all have experience in the produce industry and the day-to-day operations, and can make those small changes that make a big difference.”

Continued on page 12


With those small changes now in place, Camera Brothers is reaping big rewards. The shed’s system takes cherries from the tree to the box in a matter of minutes. First, cherries travel up an incline belt where cluster-cutters separate the stems. They then drop through gaps in the floor, with different gap widths determining cherry size. From there, cherries are sorted and sized one more time before going to the box fillers, after which filled boxes travel to the MotoWeigh. Once at the MotoWeigh, each box travels over the indexer, which spaces them out so only one box is on the scale at a time. A scanner reads the box’s barcode and sends that information to the 920i, which calls preset over/under/accept values. If the box is over or under tolerance, the 920i activates a diverter, sending it to a reject line at a smooth 45-degree angle. If a box is within the “accept” range, it continues on its conveyor, and an inkjet printer sprays nontoxic ink on the box. This information includes the type of cherry, size grade, GTIN barcode, and even the company logo. All information adheres to the 2012 Product Traceability Initiative which provides traceability standards and is becoming required by an increasing number of retailers.

The first day the MotoWeigh was in pro-duction, however, it created some confu-sion. More boxes were being rejected than previously expected. The reject line oper-ator was running out of room to stack the boxes. Surely, something must be wrong with the MotoWeigh. Using a CW-90 to double-check box weights confirmed that the rejected boxes were indeed out of tol-erance. MotoWeigh was doing its job per-fectly, rejecting all boxes more than one pound overweight. Also unexpected was the amount of underweight boxes, which could result in high fines and potential cancelled orders. With MotoWeigh in place, overweight and underweight boxes are not being shipped, and LCE estimates that the customer will see a great return on investment.

“MotoWeigh is an easy sell because people need it right now,” Daniel explains. “With increased emphasis on product traceability and GTIN barcodes, packaging facilities

are panicking. If they don’t meet these re-quirements, retailers won’t buy their prod-uct. Plus, there is the cost-saving benefit of the checkweigher itself; you throw that in and it’s a much easier sell. It seems like a lot of scale dealers are scared to touch motion weighing because it’s not traditional, but MotoWeigh is what the customer needs, so you have to adapt.”

LCE’s specialty is becoming in-motion ap-plications, but they pride themselves on customer service and giving the customer more than they expect. They set up com-plete networks of equipment that have been designed for specific packing appli-cations. LCE started doing the front end, then worked their way to the back end with inkjet systems. Next, they are moving toward the middle with box filling, which would make LCE a complete one-stop shop, benefitting the customer by calling one number instead of trying to contact all the people who worked on different parts of the system.

Emphasis on customer service provides a natural pairing for LCE and Rice Lake Weighing Systems. Daniel remembers one of his first dealings with Rice Lake. “We needed a hanger for an old me-chanical scale. The manufacturer wasn’t making the part anymore and couldn’t help us. We contacted Rice Lake, sent them the broken part, and had a custom-made replacement part sent back to us. We won the client’s full-time service business because of that experience. Rice Lake provides solutions when nobody else can.” ▪

With MotoWeigh® in place, overweight

and underweight boxes are not being shipped, and

LCE estimates that the customer will see a great

return on investment.

You shall not pass! motoWeigh’s diverter sends overweight and underweight boxes to a reject line.

Cherries in Motion continued from page 11

motoWeigh performs a vital final check before cherry boxes are shipped.

O n L O C AT i O n

800-472-6703www.ricelake.com

m.ricelake.com

Add TradeRoute to delivery route trucks and skip the trip to a certified truck scale for Legal for Trade weight. Immediate, on-site billing for delivered or collected materials saves vehicle expense and driver time.

What makes TradeRoute unique is that it operates solely from a parked position when hydraulics are used to engage the scale. The truck hydraulic system lifts the container off the truck frame into weigh mode. Within 3 to 5 seconds the driver can begin a weighing transaction. The 920i® indicator/controller displays prompts to lead the driver through the transaction, and prints customized weigh ticket.

Visit www.ricelake.com/traderoute to learn more about TradeRoute Legal for Trade onboard scale systems.

Street LegalLegal for Trade weighing for delivery route trucks

Wide-flange structural beams for strength

Precision laser-cut dovetails

Pocket end plates are constructed out of ¾-inch steel

Competitor’s pockets are welded to the ends of the scale modules and have a tendency

to bend and flex putting stress on welds

when you compare truck scales

Make sure load cell pockets are integrated into weighbridgeBy BILL MuRPHy, HEAVy CAPACITy DIRECTOR


yOu ARE NOT LOOKING FOR LOOSE CHANGE WHEN yOu CHECK THE LOAD CELL POCKETS TO COMPARE TRuCK SCALES. Instead, you’re looking at a possible major expense—the cost of downtime if the load cell pockets are welded or bolted on instead of incorporated into the overall weighbridge design.The ends of the scale modules are one of the highest stress areas of any truck scale because this is where the truck traffic enters and exits the scale platform. On many competitors’ weighbridge designs, boxes to house the load cells are welded or bolted to the ends of the scale modules and have a tendency to bend and flex excessively as truck traffic enters and exits the scale. Over a period of time, these boxes have been known to break welds, and in many cases, even break away from the main portion of the bridge, causing loss of use and premature failure of the bridge.One of the key advantages of the Rice Lake bridge design is its extraordinary strength. The Rice Lake OTR Weighbridge design is not only tied to the amount of steel we provide, but also the manner in which these individual components are fabricated and engineered into the weighbridge structure itself.The weighbridge for a typical Rice Lake Survivor OTR consists of a 5/16 -inch check-ered steel deck top plate that is welded to the top of twelve 12-inch wide-flange beams that are positioned longitudinally to the traffic flow. The spacing on the beams is on approximate 11½-inch centers, which means that the distance between beam flanges is only about 7½ inches. This ensures that no matter where a truck axle or tire is positioned on the weighbridge, it is fully supported by the steel deck, and beams.The individual ends of the twelve beams are welded to the ¾-inch end plate weld-ments running the width of the module, which include a load cell pocket fabricated from ¾-inch steel plate on each side. Most competitive models use ½-inch or ⁵⁄₈-inch end plates. The twelve longitudinal beams surround the load cell pocket, integrating the pocket into the bridge structure itself, as shown in the illustration to the left. This adds extraordinary strength and integrity to a very critical area of the weighbridge.Rice Lake takes one more very important step to ensure the strongest bridge design possible. The ¾-inch steel load cell pocket plates have precision laser-cut dovetails that are inserted into the ¾-inch end plates by laser-cutting tabs on the ends of the ¾-inch load cell pocket plates, and laser cutting square holes in ¾-inch end plates for the tabs to fit.Rice Lake assembles the steel components within the weighbridge, which allows us to provide our weighbridges to meet extraordinarily high volume traffic demands and heavier truck loads. It is these critical design criteria that make the Rice Lake OTR series a truly “generational scale.”From an engineering standpoint, the wide-flange structural beam is one of the strongest structural steel shapes available. The beam is much stronger than steel tub-ing, channels, bent steel plate, or many other types of steel components. Steel as an element is designed to bend when loaded, and return to its original shape when unloaded. If steel components are improperly chosen or sized, or are loaded beyond their original design characteristics for the application, fatigue or stretching of the steel will occur, affecting the accuracy, performance, and life span of the scale.Many competitive weighbridges use bent steel plate, junior beams, tubing or materi-als that are too light or improperly designed for the loads, resulting in eventual steel fatigue and a costly premature failure of the weighbridge.Another one of the best judges of a steel weighbridge’s ability to withstand heavy and consistent loads is the structural steel content. At Rice Lake Weighing Systems we make the heaviest and “Toughest Truck Scales on Earth.” A typical OTR Low Profile 70 foot by 11 foot steel deck truck scale has a steel content of nearly 33,000 pounds—often several thousand pounds more than comparable products. ▪

T e C H TA L K

One recent, perfect Saturday afternoon, Chris Olsen, service manager, was mowing his lawn when his cell phone vibrated.

A Rice Lake distributor on the East Coast needed a 750 lb load cell—tomorrow.

The end user, a multibillion-dollar meat-processing company, had shut down a line to move equipment and accidently pulled the cable out of a load cell. They wanted the

distributor to send out a technician to splice it. They had to be rolling in time for Monday’s early shift. But splicing the cable would not work. They needed a new load cell.

Chris checked inventory and saw that Rice Lake had the load cell in stock. FedEx and UPS had no flights available Saturday night, but UPS could pick it up Sunday morning and deliver it to the distributor by 7:30 Sunday evening. Chris drove to the plant, flipped on the

lights, located the load cell, and packed it up.

On Sunday morning, Chris was waiting at the plant when the UPS truck drove into the lot. He handed over the load cell and went home to finish mowing his lawn.

The email received from the distributor Sunday night declares:

“Awesome job, Chris! Load cell arrived at 7:40 p.m. Going now to complete the job. No other scale company on earth

would or could do what you people do. Thanks a bunch!”End of story.


m.ricelake.com


coil Scale IngenuitySteel manufacturer’s custom coil scale increases efficiency and safety, and reduces costly repairs and downtime

Regardless of the industry, having the right tool for the right job is essential. An Illinois steel company discovered this when they tried to adapt a floor scale to weigh 60,000-pound coils. Constant breakdowns required emergency repair and regular load cell replacement, which caused costly work stoppages. Even when the scale was functional, it was a produc-tion bottleneck. The number of coils finished per day has an inverse correlation with the time taken to weigh the coil—as the time decreases, the quantity of coils increases and vice versa.

One day, both the floor scale and the plant manager reached their breaking point. The manager called Kurt Hebenstreit at Champion Scale to ask for a long-term solution. The St. Louis scale shop visited the facility and assessed the challenge. Currently, a crane was lifting the coil onto the scale, which gave Kurt an idea. If he could automate the transport of coils across the scale, it would drastically increase efficiency. The scale would need to be rugged enough to handle the heavy coils and user-friendly to streamline the weighing process.

What Kurt needed was a miniature railroad scale built flush with the production floor, and a corresponding miniature railroad car to carry the coil as it crossed the scale. This option would reduce scale damage; forklifts could safely drive over the scale instead of trying to navigate around an above ground option. Safety would also be increased by reducing trip-ping hazards. The only problem was such a scale didn’t exist. It would need to be custom built, and Kurt needed a company to work with him cost effectively on the design.

He called Rice Lake.

Kurt worked with a technical sales engineer who quickly provided a quote and drawings of a modified RoughDeck® floor scale. The plan was approved by the end-user, who was eager to reap the rewards of updated technology built to suit his unique requirements.

Five years later, the RoughDeck CS is performing better than expected. With only routine maintenance, the work stop-pages due to emergency repairs have been eliminated. In fact, the scale is still operating on its original load cells, which are mounted outside of the rail to reduce the strain of scale move-ment as the coil car crosses.

The time to produce a coil has been reduced from an estimated 25 minutes to 15 minutes due to the automated coil transporta-tion. Instead of using a crane, now when a coil is ready to be weighed, the operator simply presses a button to lower it onto the coil car. The car moves across the RoughDeck CS, stopping for a quick weighment before continuing on its tracks to a hold-ing area. The car then returns to its home base beneath the next coil, which is now ready to be wound.

The increase in production and reduction of repair has helped the scale pay for itself. Having the right scale for the right job is integral—even if the scale hasn’t been invented yet. ▪

What Kurt needed was a miniature railroad scale built

flush with the production floor, and to fit with the

existing miniature railroad car to carry the coil as it

crossed the scale.

Once this 60,000-pound steel coil is wound, the railroad car lifts it off the cylinder and travels across the Roughdeck CS. All aboard!

O n L O C AT i O n


SyCSA’S IMPRESSIVE R & D CENTER HAS A COMPLETE SMALL-SCALE PLANT TO TEST MATERIALS AND DEVELOP CuSTOMIZED FLOW TECHNOLOGy, INCLuDING BINS, HOPPERS WITH SENSORS TO DETECT WALL FORCE, CONVEyANCE SySTEMS, VALVES, AIR PRESSuRE AND VACuuM TECHNOLOGy, FILLING, MIxING, AND BATCHING EquIPMENT, AND SILOS MOuNTED ON RICE LAKE RL9000 LOAD CELLS. IT IS PROBABLy THE FIRST AND ONLy DEVELOPMENT CENTER OF THIS CALIBER IN LATIN AMERICA.

Simply put, a silo is a structure for storing bulk material. Silo systems, though, can be anything but simple. The complicated part is to move the material stored in the silo in a smooth and controlled flow.

Silos y Camioness (SYCSA), Pachuca, Mexico, has been building silos for 44 years. They began by fabricating small silos for transporting cement by truck, and tower silos for storing cement and additives for batching plants. In time, the need for transporting and storing larg-er quantities of cement grew. Customers also needed silos equipped with electronic weighing systems, digital displays, and printers to keep a more accurate inventory weight. In addition, SYCSA was finding new customers with different materials, including dry chemicals to add color to plastics; foods such as flour, corn, and sugar; and recycled materials such as shredded plastic and crushed glass.

As processes changed and customers began to demand greater ease of op-eration, SYCSA’s expertise evolved to more sophisticated material han-dling, such as dosing in small quantities and formulating and processing material particles of different sizes, shapes, and characteristics that tend to segregate or stick together.

In 1993, automation brought new tools and skills, and SYCSA began designing and manufacturing complete silo systems including components, piping, valves, air pressure, and vacuum technology to move materials from silos, bins, and hoppers through the entire batching and processing sequence. SYCSA’s

THE SCIENCE OF

On LOCATiOn

Continued on page 20

rathole bridge

SILOS

ratholes and bridges

Two of the most common flow problems in silos are no-flow and erratic flow. no-flow can be caused by ratholing and bridging. Ratholing occurs when the material moves through the central part of the silo to the outlet while the remaining material sticks to the walls. if the material being handled has a sufficient cohesive strength, the stagnant material outside the channel will not flow through it. Once the rathole is emptied, there is no flow from the silo.

erratic flow occurs when the material in the silo flows intermittently and forms a bridge over the opening. The bridge collapses when the material above reaches a critical stress level and falls within the silo. Flow then continues until the next bridge forms.

The potential for ratholing and bridging depends on several factors, including humidity, temperature, storage time, and the size, shape, and weight of the material, whether flakes, granules, or pellets. Caked material can often be dislodged by vibrating the silo or using an air cannon. if those methods are not successful, removing material adhering to the walls of a large silo is expensive.

The RL35023 is an alloy steel single-ended shear beam load cell design that allows it to be used in many applications from floor scales to bins, silos, and hoppers.

The RL9000TWM is a stainless steel, low profile, all-in-one weigh module that is very easy to install, and its robust design ensures many years of trouble-free service.


At first glance, the narrow hall appears to be a well-stocked pantry of freshly canned goods. Read the labels and shake the jars and you find varying weights of pellets, flakes, powders, pieces of glass, plastic, metal, seeds, and pasta. This is the SYCSA research and development center inventory of dry materials intended to flow out of a customer’s silo and into their processing system.

each ingredient has unique characteris-tics (weight, fall rate, granule size, repose angle, density) that affect the discharge of material into silos, piping, valves, and auxiliary equipment. At SYCSA’s R & d center, team members custom design and manufacture silos and systems for storing and processing hundreds of raw materials and teach customers how to control their process.

The flow of some material, like shredded plastic shown above, is very difficult to control and maintain inside the silo and in pneumatic conveyance systems because it self-organizes into “frames.”

The SYCSA development center resolves these and other unique challenges that arise while designing each silo system.

The Science of Silos continued from page 18

experience grew as they worked with each type of material, culminating in a research and development center where the work team of SYCSA’s bulk material laboratory believes all flow problems can be solved through improvements in design. The laboratory manager observes, “It is very expensive to correct flow problems at the site. At the research and development center we can attack the problem much more cheaply.”

SYCSA’s impressive R & D center has a complete small-scale plant to test materials and develop customized flow technology, including bins, hoppers with sensors to detect wall force, conveyance systems, valves, air pressure and vacuum technology, filling, mixing and batching equipment, and silos mounted on Rice Lake RL9000TWM load cells. It is probably the first and only development center of this caliber in Latin America.

SYCSA uses its laboratory and teaching center to design, build, and test automated equipment, studying specific material and flow characteristics. SYCSA customers and end users also attend training seminars there to learn how their specific material can be handled.

Some of SYCSA’s technology is designed expressly for the plastics industry. Mills trans-port scrap plastic to storage silos and then to pelletizing machines to be returned to production. The flow of the material is very difficult to control and maintain inside the silo and in pneumatic conveyance systems because it self-organizes into “frames.” The SYCSA development center resolves these and other unique challenges that arise along the way, ensuring that each silo system provides the best solutions in material storing and handling. ▪

O n L O C AT i O n

SCAN ITScan this QR code for more

information about Rice Lake Indicators.

Rice Lake’s selection of indicator/controllers includes the right tool for every job.

From simple weighing applications to controlling entire processing plants—we have the equipment and technology to get it done. Rice Lake’s famous customer service and technical support makes even complex applications simple.

Please visit ricelake.com/indicators for more information about Rice Lake weighing instrumentation.


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O n L O C AT i O n

MIKE MARTIN, WAREHOuSE AND PACKAGING MANAGER FOR JONES FEED MILL LTD., DESCRIBES THE FEED PROD-uCTS AS HIGH-CALCIuM, LIME-STONE-BASED FEED FOR CATTLE, PIGS, HORSES, AND CHICKENS. He adds with pride, “We supply Barry Irwin with feed for his racehorses.” Barry’s nickname is “B Eye,” using his initials to refer to his uncanny ability in ferreting out talented horses in unlikely places.

The feed recipes are batched using 40 micro scales that all feed into one load cell. The various recipes include specific amounts of vitamins, zinc oxide, cilium, and medications as prescribed by the on-site nutritionist. All the medicated feed is kept separately where a veterinarian must sign off the withdrawal period and the inclusion rate before cattle can go to market.

In 1930, Ernest E. Jones and his wife bought a small feed mill on Alfred Street in Linwood, Ontario. By 1998, the third generation of the Jones family was running the now many Jones Feed Mills, and by then feed had dramatically changed. Due to increasing demand for medication-free feed, some of the company’s mills are dedicated to organic, medication-free, and identity-preserved feeds. Older mills are being updated with the latest technology.

Rice Lake is justly proud to be a part of that “latest technology.” The list of Rice Lake products at the Jones Mill in Linwood in-cludes a new SURVIVOR® OTR, a LaserLightTM, S-type load cells, and the mighty Rice Lake 920i Indicator/Controller—all installed and serviced by Circuit Scale in Kitchener, Ontario.

if it is true that we are what we eat and that holds for all animals, it could be said that Jones Feed ran the Kentucky derby [2011] when Animal Kingdom won by 2¾ lengths.

Circuit Scale Company was established in 2005 by Don

Herzberg and Doug Van der Sluis, who hit the ground run-

ning by providing certified ser-vice to a diverse industrial and agri-

cultural clientele in the southwestern Ontario area. According to Don, “When

Jones Feed Mills took on the challenging project of establishing and building a complete

pre-mix facility, Circuit Scale provided, through Rice Lake Weighing Systems, much of the weighing solutions and equipment, including a 93 foot concrete deck OTR truck scale.”

Ian Scott, Rice Lake regional director in Eastern Canada adds, “Don and Doug had previously been top technicians with a scale manu-facturing company and they knew their stuff. When Jones Feed asked for a quote on weighing equipment, they wanted the best. Circuit Scale is ISO/IEC 17025 certified and that was important because of the traceability requirements Jones Feed had to meet.” ▪The 920i flexible and intuitive indicator/controller combines the best features of weight instruments, PLCs, and computers.

MotoWeigh® equipment rushes the cherry crop through cleaning, metal detection, washing, grading, weighing, and labeling. The MotoWeigh line

of in-motion equipment is built to withstand nonstop commercial use and sticky cherry juice. Unique design and features reduce

washdown and maintenance time.

See MotoWeigh in action at ricelake.com/motocherry


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Put Rice Lake’s MajorSlice in charge. This all-stainless commercial slicer holds thickness without retreat, and ranks highest in both safety and sanitary performance.

• PatentedVARIOCUTnon-slipthicknessadjustment• Smoothedgesandfewermovingparts,sanitarybydesign• Straightforwardremovablecarriage• Detachedsharpener• 12"and14"bladesizes

Visit ricelakeretail.com/command 800-472-6703www.ricelakeretail.com


The MajorSlice features an index control knob

that clicks into position and doesn’t move as the

slicer is cutting.

“Once I showed him the hand guards and that the

blade isn’t exposed like the others, he was sold.”

a cut aboverice Lake’s MajorSlice™ commercial slicers take a lead role in delis

SuE ZIELKE KNOWS HOW TO SLICE THE PERFECT HAM. The Park ’n Shop’s deli department shows off her work in their display case much like a high school proudly exhibits its trophies. Rows of perfectly sliced meat adorn the container in Culver, Indiana, waiting for a resident to include it in a summer picnic lunch on the shores of nearby Lake Maxinkuckee.

With 23 years of deli experience and as manager of the Park ’n Shop’s deli department, Sue has seen new technology come and go throughout the years. When she was asked by Rice Lake Retail Solu-tions to beta-test the new MajorSlice 300, she had a few hesitations. The department was already using two slicers, and was a city with a population less than 1500, is a third slicer necessary? And there was nothing wrong with the existing slicers. Sue had never heard of Rice Lake and when she discovered it was a scale com-pany, she wasn’t sure what to expect.

However, when the MajorSlice 300 ar-rived, those hesitations were put to rest. “The first thing I noticed was how heavy it was,” explains Sue. “I could tell it is very well built and extremely high quality.” Im-mediately after using the MajorSlice, Sue’s initial impressions were confirmed. The 101-pound slicer not only surpassed the others in weight and build quality, but also in ease of use, safety, and cut consistency.

“The product pusher keeps everything in place as I’m slicing,” Sue continues. “Whenever I have something to cut, I choose our MajorSlice. The meat always

looks the same and afterwards, it’s very easy to clean.” Previously, a slice of meat taken at the beginning of the stack would not have the same thickness as one taken at the end of the stack. The MajorSlice features an index control knob that clicks into position and doesn’t move as the slicer is cutting. Another of the deli department’s annoyances with their old slicers was the difficulty in cleaning beneath the units—their short feet didn’t allow for hand clearance. The MajorSlice has taller feet which allow for a quick and easy countertop wipe-down, and a lever to elevate the unit when more compre-hensive cleaning is required.

After the beta-testing period was com-plete, the Park ’n Shop’s manager began prepping the MajorSlice for its return to Rice Lake. But Sue wasn’t ready to see it leave. She wanted the store to purchase the beta unit. “I must have told him every day how much better it was than the others and how much everyone in the department liked it,” said Sue. “I think my manager was getting tired of me pestering him about it and got the hint.” The straw that broke the camel’s back and triggered the purchase, however,

was safety. Sue explains, “Over the years, we have had a few nicks from using the old slicers. Once I showed him the hand guards and that the blade isn’t exposed like the others, he was sold.”

Six months after its arrival, the MajorSlice 300 has taken command of the Park ’n Shop’s deli department. Now serving as the everyday slicer, it has relegated its predecessors to spot duty—used only when the MajorSlice is already busy. It has even accommodated some unusual slicing requests. “I’ve had customers ask for their tomatoes and potatoes to be sliced,” Sue remembers. “I knew if I put those products on one of the old slicers, they would get shot against the wall as soon as they touched the blade. But the MajorSlice’s product pusher keeps that from happening. I think the customer was expecting us to use a knife to cut the tomato for them, and they couldn’t believe it when we used the slicer. It came out perfectly!” ▪

majorSlice variocut™ technology holds product in position, ensuring each slice has the same thickness.

R e TA i L

Whenpeoplesetoutto shatterworldrecords,they relyonRiceLakefloorscales todeliveraccurateand provableweightdata.


mazatlán, mexico

IrvINe, caLIFOrNIa—To celebrate Qzina Institute of Chocolate’s 30th anniversary, pastry chefs created the world’s largest edible chocolate sculpture, breaking the previous Guinness world record of 10,736 pounds and setting a new record of 18,239 pounds. The sculpture, six feet tall and ten feet wide, had a base that weighed more than 3,000 pounds. This Mayan chocolate temple is a replica of the Temple Kukulkan based in Chichen Itza, Mexico. Mayans worshiped the cacao tree and praised its beans as the food of the gods.

MONTreaL, Quebec—McGill University shattered the Guinness world record for the largest fruit salad that tipped the Rice Lake RoughDeck floor scales at a whopping 11,197 pounds.

In all, some 5,000 pounds of watermelon, 2,250 pounds of pine-apple, 1,300 pounds of cantaloupe, 1,000 pounds of honeydew, 360 pounds of strawberries, and 220 pounds of apples were used in the record-breaking salad—with about 60 percent of it coming from nearby Macdonald Campus Farm.

Throughout the day, the Guinness adjudicator scrutinized every step of the process. “There are strict guidelines that must be fol-

MaZaTLÁN, MeXIcO—Mazatlan prides itself on seafood, to say the least. The “Pearl of the Pacific,” as its nickname notes, sits on the country’s western coast and is renowned for its fishing industry. Residents have also taken to calling their city “El Capital de Camerón,” the Shrimp Capital, an unofficial title for sure, but one they claim with pride nonetheless.

Now the people of Mazatlan have a legitimate title to attach to that pride: Guinness world record holders for the largest shrimp cocktail ever made. Once all the shrimp had been added to the cocktail glass, all the dipping sauce had been mixed in, and the glass rim lined meticulously with more shrimp, each the size of a hotdog, the Rice Lake RoughDeck® floor scales indicated an incredible 1,187-pound, 3-ounce shrimp cocktail. Victor Santana, Solo Peso, supplied the weighing equipment.

lowed in order for the record to be recognized by Guinness,” she said. “In the case of this attempt the salad has to be made of at least five different varieties of fresh fruit with a very small percentage of added juice or other liquid.” Rice Lake equipment was supplied by Balance GTR, Inc., Châteauguay, Quebec.

The giant chocolate pyramid was measured and weighed on a special digital scale system devised for the event by ABCO Scale of Ontario, California. They arranged four 4 foot by 4 foot Rice Lake RoughDeck floor scales under the corners of a 12 foot by 12 foot platform. The scales sent data to a 920i® Indicator/Controller. The 920i summed up the four scales and provided an accurate total weight that the Guinness judges accepted as proof.

O n L O C AT i O n

RiceLakefloorscaleswe

igharecord-breaking

1,187-pound,3-ounces

hrimpcocktail.

Thisfruitsaladisanythingbutlight;withRiceLake

scalesindicatingaprecise11,197pounds.

Weight Training for the BrainSharpen skills and update knowledge by sending scale techs to Rice Lake Technical Training Seminars. They learn hands-on from experts who teach, demonstrate, and work one-on-one with students. New and experienced scale techs learn and use the latest weighing equipment, software, and techniques.

ES-111 Fundamentals of Electronic SystemsHands-on training for novices in the basics of calibration,configuration, serial interfacing, and troubleshooting components.

ES-222 Advanced Scale System TroubleshootingA systematic and methodical approach to troubleshooting for intermediate technicians. Little lecture, heavy-lifting lab work.

ES-300 Indicator Format and Process ControlBasic setup and configuration of 720i™, 820i®, and 920i® indicators using the front panel and software tools iRev, Revolution®, and PCEE, and setup and use of the iQUBE2® digital diagnostic junction box.

ES-301 920i Advanced ProgrammingWork with components and syntax of the iRite™ programming language. Gain experience in writing, compiling, editing, and downloading 920i programs. Explore capabilities of the 920i database.

SA-101 Successful Selling SkillsPut muscle into selling complete scale solutions. Develop presentation and listening skills, and learn important techniques for how to close the deal.

Contact our Training Coordinator: Call 715-234-9171 or 800-472-6703 Email: [email protected] or visit ricelake.com/training.


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