What’s the difference between minor and major weighing in production?

Major ingredients are higher-flow, bulk sources (e.g., silos, totes, tanks) that prioritize throughput with fast-fill/trim strategies. Minor ingredients use smaller bins/feeders and higher resolution for tighter tolerances.

Which weighing modes are supported?

Systems support gain-in-weight, loss-in-weight, weigh-in-place, and check-weigh, engineered around material behavior and required accuracy/rate.

How do these systems integrate with batching and plant controls?

Weighing integrates with automatic/semi-automatic batching, PLC/SCADA, and pneumatic/mechanical conveying. Data—weights, recipes, lots, timestamps, operator IDs—is stored in SQL for reporting and audits.

Do you support regulated or audit-ready environments?

Yes. Enforced tolerances, ingredient/lot verification, and SQL records provide audit-ready evidence for GFSI, FSMA, GMP, and customer audits.

Can I scale from minor/major weighing to broader automation later?

Yes. Systems are modular with upgrade paths to micro weighing, kitchen/hand-prompt stations, and full automatic batching while preserving recipes and historical data.

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Minor & Major Weighing Systems

Minor and major ingredients drive cost, texture, and performance. Sterling Systems & Controls engineers minor & major weighing systems that enforce tolerances, verify ingredients and lots, and hand off cleanly to batching or conveying — so results are repeatable shift-to-shift, not just “close enough.”

What Do “Minor” and “Major” Mean?

Major ingredients: higher throughputs from silos, bulk bags, totes, or tanks. Strategy: fast fill + trim for accuracy without sacrificing rate.
Minor ingredients: lower flow, finer resolution, tighter tolerances. Strategy: precision feed control with protected weighments.
Both can feed gain-in-weight, loss-in-weight, or weigh-in-place architectures and hand off to mixers, extruders, dryers, or packaging.

System Architecture (Built to the Material & the Mission)

Weighing modules: weigh hoppers, platforms, or in-place vessels sized for accuracy and rate.
Feed devices: auger, vibratory, belt, slide-gate/valve, or pump (for liquids) — chosen for the material’s flow behavior.
Discharge & isolation: slide gates, rotary valves, airlocks, or diverters to protect weighments and ensure clean transfer.
Controls & HMI: PLC/HMI with recipe logic, alarm handling, and guided operator prompts.
Data backbone: SQL database (and optional WebCentral) for batch/lot records, reporting, and audits.

Weighing Modes Supported

Gain-in-Weight (GIW): weigh product as it fills the vessel.
Loss-in-Weight (LIW): control feed rate by monitoring the feeder’s mass loss.
Weigh-in-Place: measure in the process location to remove handling steps.
Check-Weigh/Verification: confirm targets before release or next step.

Accuracy & Throughput Strategies

Fast-fill & dribble/trim profiles to hit tight targets.
Tolerance enforcement per ingredient (over/under windows).
Dynamic filtering & motion detection to stabilize readings.
Interlocks with conveying so weighments aren’t disturbed.

Integration That Matters (Not Just a Scale)

Automatic/semi-automatic batching (micro, minor, major, kitchen, hand-prompt).
Pneumatic or mechanical conveying interlocks and timing.
Downstream equipment (mixers, extruders, dryers, packaging) for coordinated sequences.
Plant systems: PLC/SCADA, MES/ERP, and network reporting.

Compliance, Hygiene & Traceability

Who/what/when/within-tolerance recorded for each weighment.
Lot verification (entry or barcode/RFID).
Sanitary builds and cleanable surfaces where required.
Audit-ready records for GFSI, FSMA, GMP, and customer audits.

Typical Options & Components

Scales & weigh hoppers • Ingredient bins & refill systems • Bulk bag/tote/silo interfaces
Feeders (auger/vibratory/belt/valve) • Airlocks/diverters • Dust containment interfaces
PLC/HMI recipe management • Barcode/RFID lot entry • Label/report printing
SQL database reporting • Network connectivity & backups

Where It Fits

Food & baking • Pet food & feed • Chemicals & additives • Plastics/compounding • Nutraceuticals • Other industrial powders

Planning to standardize minor/major additions and close your traceability gap? Request a quick application review — we’ll specify the weighing architecture that matches your materials, rates, and compliance needs.