Yes, we hire and sell calibration chains for belt weighers and weightometers. The chain is hired with its current certificate, and we check it suits your conveyor before we book it. Hire it for your own technicians, or have us run the calibration.
This guide covers what a chain does, when hiring one makes sense, what a chain check can tell you, and what we need for a hire enquiry. For how a chain compares with test weights and material tests, see belt weigher calibration methods.
What is a belt weigher calibration chain?
A roller calibration chain (also called a roller test chain) puts a known load on the belt over the weigh area. The chain is restrained in place while its rollers turn on the moving belt, so the weigh idlers carry a steady, known load through the belt. Its certified mass per metre is the reference.
It isn’t loose gear riding around the conveyor. Where it sits, how much of the weigh area it covers and how it’s restrained all follow the chain’s and the integrator’s instructions.
When does hiring a chain make sense?
- An occasional planned test: you need a chain for one job and don’t want to own and maintain one.
- Weights aren’t practical: the frame has no test weights fitted, or putting them on isn’t practical.
- Commissioning or chasing a result: a second reference shows how the scale responds with the load carried through the belt.
- A shutdown window: book the chain, the access and the people together, before the conveyor comes free.
Chain or test weights?
It depends on the scale and what you need the result to show. Static test weights are the everyday span check on most frames. A chain loads the scale through the belt, which is closer to running conditions. Neither reproduces real product, so where the question is the tonnes going over the belt, a material test may be needed as well.
If you’re buying a new frame, calibration weights are quoted separately; they’re never standard with a frame. Our billet weights work on all frames and can be customised to suit. Our screw-type billet weights have an anti-seize special alloy insert, designed to stop the seizing that stainless-on-stainless screws are prone to. See test weights, chains and billets for looking after reference gear.
What does a chain check tell you?
How the scale responds to a known load carried through the belt, under the test conditions. It doesn’t reproduce real product, the way it sits on the belt, or the conveyor running fully loaded. So a good chain result on its own isn’t proof of the tonnes across the full operating range.
As a rule of thumb, repeat chain runs should agree within about 0.1%, and a routine span that has moved more than about 0.25% needs attention. Check the limits for your integrator and your site.
If the chain and the test weights disagree, look at both references, how each was applied, the setup data, the zero and the mechanics before you change anything. Idler alignment is a common cause, but not the only one. See zero, span, repeatability and calibration tolerance.
What do we need for a hire enquiry?
- Site location, preferred dates and how long you need it.
- Belt width, belt speed and the material carried.
- Weigh frame and integrator make and model.
- Idler spacing, the number of weigh idlers, and drawings or dimensions of the weigh area.
- Normal operating range, and the test load you’re after, if you know it.
- Access, lifting and any transport limits.
- Whether your technicians will run the test, or you want us to quote the calibration.
Send what you’ve got; we’ll work out the rest. Photos of the equipment labels and a safe view of the weigh frame and idlers help. We confirm the chain suits before it’s booked.
How do we pick the right chain?
Chain loading, length and coverage have to suit the weigh area and the test range. Belt width alone isn’t enough: the frame geometry, belt speed, access and the integrator’s calibration method all count. The integrator may want the chain entered as a linear loading or as an equivalent test load. Use the units and definitions in the manual for your model, not a figure copied from a similar conveyor.
What comes with the chain?
The chain is hired with its current certificate, so the reference record matches the chain that arrives on site. Before booking, we confirm the chain identification, its reference loading, the hire period, and transport, handling and return. Check its condition as well as its paperwork: rollers, links, restraints and cleanliness.
Can we do the calibration for you?
Yes. Ask us to quote a calibration visit with your enquiry. We look at the installation and agree the method, scope, access and running window with your site. Where a chain suits and one is available, it goes into that plan.
The visit covers inspection, zero and span checks, repeatability, and a record of what we found and adjusted. See what happens during a belt weigher calibration visit. The test conditions and reference details go against the asset in AIMM, our asset management system.
What does site need to prepare?
Work on or near a conveyor, or inside an electrical enclosure, needs isolation under your site’s procedures and trained, authorised people. If that’s not you, stop and call us on 1300 101 666.
Agree the empty-belt running window, access, isolation, lifting gear and people for the job. Fitting, moving and removing the chain is done with the conveyor isolated, never by reaching in near a moving belt. The chain and integrator instructions set the test sequence and how long each run takes.
Need a manual for your equipment?
For a chain calibration, the integrator’s make, model and software version matter most, because its manual sets how the chain loading is entered.
Talk to us about manuals for your equipment. Send the make, model, serial number and software version (a photo of the label is fine) and we’ll help you find the right document.
When should you call us?
Call before you lock in a shutdown, so the chain, the people and the access line up. Call too if a chain run and your test weights disagree, or repeat runs won’t settle. Call 1300 101 666 or email admin@accurateindustries.com.au.
Buying a calibration chain
If you calibrate often, run several belt weighers, or want your own reference on site, buying a chain can work out better than hiring one. We pick a chain to buy the same way we pick a hire chain: chain loading, length and coverage are matched to your weigh area, belt width and test range. Ask us about certificates and re-checks when you order. Not sure whether to hire or buy? Tell us how often you calibrate and how many conveyors you have, and we’ll price both.
Frequently asked questions
Can I hire a calibration chain in Australia?
Yes. Send us your site location and conveyor details, and we’ll confirm suitability, availability and transport for the hire.
Does the chain come with a certificate?
Yes. It’s hired with its current certificate, matched to the chain we send.
How much does calibration chain hire cost?
Ask us for a quote with your dates, hire length, location and scope. When you compare prices, check whether transport, handling or a calibration visit is included.
Is a chain calibration a trade verification?
No. A routine chain check is a maintenance calibration. If the scale is used for trade, tell us before booking so we can scope the separate requirements.
Can you help if we don’t know the weigh length or model?
Yes. Start with photos and whatever drawings you have, and we’ll tell you what needs confirming before we recommend a chain.
Should we hire or buy a calibration chain?
Hiring suits occasional checks or a one-off job. Buying suits sites that calibrate often or run several belt weighers. Tell us how often you calibrate and we’ll price both.
Can you supply a chain to suit our conveyor?
Yes. We match chain loading, length and coverage to your weigh area, belt width and test range, whether you’re hiring or buying.