What Are Bench Scales Used For?

A bench scale is a type of scale that is specifically designed to be used on a worktop or bench. Bench scales usually offer more applications than compact scales while taking up less room than floor scales. In this blog, we’ll delve into the benefits of bench scales, what they can be used for, and five bench scales that we recommend for you.

What are the Benefits of a Bench Scale?

There is a multitude of benefits to investing in a bench scale, let’s look at our top five.

1.     Variety of Types

The first is the wide variety of types, so you can choose the bench scale specific to your needs. Inscale stock counting, checkweighing, price computing and washdown bench scales, perfect for a variety of industries and applications.

2.     Small Footprint

The second benefit of bench scales is that they are uniquely sized to be sturdy enough for prolonged everyday use and yet not take up much space on your bench top. The less space your scale takes up, the more room for other activities and items needed for your work, which ultimately makes you more efficient.

3.     Usually Portable

Some bench scales feature rechargeable batteries. This means that they can be taken anywhere you need, including environments with little or no access to electricity. You can take your bench scale outside in the field or all the way to the other end of the warehouse with your newfound freedom!

4.     High Capacity

Inscale supplies bench scales with capacities that range from 1kg to about 75kg. While we do offer models with even higher capacities, those would likely be more useful acting as floor scales. For more information about whether a bench or floor scale is better for you, check out our other blog Bench Scale vs. Floor Scale: Which is Right For Me?

Some bench scales boast overload protection, which prevents the internal components from getting damaged if the scale is overloaded. Other bench scales feature shock protection, giving you peace of mind if an item is ever roughly dropped on the scale by accident.

5.     Affordable

Bench scales are exceptionally affordable, especially considering all that they offer. They are a smart, financially conscious investment. Here at Inscale, our most expensive bench scale is less than £600, with most being much less than that.

What is a Bench Scale Used For?

Now that we know what the benefits of bench scales are, let’s go into some specific uses for them.

Weighing Ingredients/Food

Washdown bench scales with an IP rating are ideal for use in the food industry, or even just in your very own kitchen. When you’re working with food, hygiene is the top priority. When you’re weighing raw meat, fish, or common allergy foods like peanuts, it’s common sense to clean your scale when you’re done. Washdown scales make the cleaning process much easier, depending on the scale’s IP rating. For example, a bench scale with an IP rating of 68 can handle being completely submerged in water! Since washdown scales are typically constructed from stainless steel, they are also durable against rust, corrosion and general everyday dings or scratches. 

Weighing Parcels

Bench scales are ideal for weighing parcels in a post office or dispatch. You may have noticed that when you visit the post office, they weigh your parcel and quote you a price to ship that item. No matter how your parcel gets transported, be it a train, truck, plane or boat, each one has a limit on how much weight they can carry all at once. The heavier your package, the less room there is for other, smaller packages, which may need to wait a bit longer at dispatch. Weighing packages is vital for the shipping industry, and bench scales are the perfect tool.

Price Computing

Inscale stocks a variety of retail scales that are primarily used to calculate prices by weight. All of our retail scales are trade-approved according to UK law. You may choose to use a non-specialised trade-approved bench scale to determine prices by weight, but you would be spending a lot of time calculating manually, instead of letting your scale do the work for you. Retail bench scales save you time and effort, making your workday a breeze. For more info about retail scales, see our blog What Are the Benefits of Portable Retail Scales?

Checkweighing in Manufacturing Settings

Once you have your standard product, it’s time to recreate it repeatedly… thousands of times. The goal in manufacturing is to get each consequent product as close to perfect as possible. However, a lot of the time there’s a range of what’s acceptable to put on the market. Checkweighing bench scales help handle the weight ranges. Simply set high and low limits and you’ll be notified when a product is outside of those parameters so that your customers get exactly what they paid for.

Which Bench Scales Do We Recommend?

Adam Aqua ABW-S Stainless Steel Waterproof Scale

Capacity: 4kg – 32kg

Readability: 0.1g – 2g

The ABW-S Aqua Stainless Steel Waterproof Scale is the perfect choice when you need a workhorse washdown scale. With an IP68 rating and grade 304 stainless steel, the ABW-S is extremely easy to clean and impressively durable. With its intuitive and responsive display on both the front and rear of the scale, the ABW-S can be shared between workers, increasing efficiency. Do two different departments need to share a scale? The ABW-S’s rechargeable battery ensures that it can be transported there with ease.

Adam CKT ‘Cruiser’ Bench Checkweighing Scale

Capacity: 4kg – 48kg

Readability: 0.1g – 0.5g

Adam Equipment’s CKT ‘Cruiser’ Bench Checkweighing Scale accomplishes basic checkweighing and parts counting operations quickly and accurately. The CKT’s clear, backlit display changes colour for underweight, overweight, or exact items, with no further calculation on your part. Even better, easily connect the CKT to a printer or computer with the RS-232 (or optional USB) interfaces so you can build an accurate record to look back on!

Kern FOB-LM Approved Stainless Steel Bench Scale

Capacity: 1.5kg – 15kg

Readability: 0.5g – 5g

Kern’s FOB-LM Approved Stainless Steel Bench Scale meets the legal requirements to be used for selling items by weight. In addition, the FOB-LM has an IP67 rating and a stainless steel design, as well as a checkweighing function. With its IP rating and trade approval, this scale is perfect for kitchens or market stalls. If you’d prefer a retail scale that does all the calculating for you, take a look at our selection here.

Adam CBX Compact Bench Scale

Capacity: 1200g – 6kg

Readability 0.1g – 1g

Adam’s CBX Compact Bench Scale is the affordable choice you need. The CBX is compact and portable, with over 200 hours of battery life. It’s perfect for simple, accurate weighing processes, and it’s easy to use so there’s little training involved. The CBX is perfect for schools, educational fieldwork, and kitchens!

Adam CPWplus S Bench Scale

Capacity: 6kg – 200kg

Readability 2g – 50g

Adam’s CPWplus S Bench Scale is the one for you if you’re low on space but still need a high capacity. This scale features a splashproof indicator that can be wall-mounted for your convenience. The CPWplus S can be used to weigh small animals in a veterinarian's office, as a stand-on scale in a gym, or to weigh parts and packages in a warehouse. Whatever you use it for, the CPWplus S is the ultimate heavy-duty option.

Want to learn about how to use bench scales? Do you still have questions? Get In Touch with the Inscale team!