Portable weighbridges answer shortand long-term needs

Companies with a requirement for a weighbridge on their site but off their balance sheet, or farmers and project managers requiring them seasonally or for limited periods of time, can now lease a South African-designed and manufactured range. Demand for weighbridges is growing as companies realise the value of the management information that is available by routinely weighing all traffic of vehicles in and out of their mine, yard or farm. Fleet managers also have to install weighbridges in order to protect themselves and their companies from being prosecuted under Aarto (Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences), according to Dawie Spangenberg of the Central Weighbridge Company (CWC) South Africa. “Anyone that sells or moves product on the public roads in trucks will have to install a weighbridge, including smaller distributors and farmers. This is the reason we have introduced the option of a full maintenance lease for our weighbridges,” he says. CWC designs, manufactures, installs and maintains weighbridges throughout the sub-region. The weighbridges can cater for road vehicles from 44 metres long, and can be made to any custom width. A recent addition to the range of product is a 22m Rail-Road weighbridge designed, supplied and installed at a major sugar mill in KZN for the distribution of bulk sugar from the silo facility by rail wagon and also by road vehicle. It is designed to accept a GVM of 105mt, but also to isolate two of the independent platforms for the mass determination of a rail wagon which is some 6 metres shorter than the articulated road vehicle. It also owns and supplies a customised software management system. “A weighbridge is only as good as the software. All weighbridges have platforms, load-cells that basically determine the mass. It is what you are able to do with the information that really counts,” he says. The CWC system is real time and capable of linking several remote locations. It will, for example, capture a vehicle’s despatch details at a depot in Gauteng, and make this information available for comparison when it arrives at the weigh-in point at its destination in Cape Town. Any discrepancies are immediately highlighted by the system. The reinforced concrete weighbridge has been designed by structural and mechanical engineers. Unlike any other weighbridge, the mechanical system is designed for strength, toughness, stiffness and longevity. Major stress areas have been specifically strengthened. The design philosophy is for high safety margins and cyclic fatigue. This translates into a structure that has a long life span wherein over resonance is effectively dealt with. All this helps to reduce the cost of fabrication and installation, and also counters the theft of steel plates from an all-steel weighbridge design, as well as the obvious rust challenge. The ‘Portable Weighbridge’, designed and manufactured by CWC, is unique. Unlike other weighbridge designs it requires little or no foundation work. The need for expensive civil works has been significantly reduced and in numerous instances the weighbridge can be installed directly onto a hard-core base, existing road or concrete surfaces. Furthermore, the concrete entry ramps are connected to the sub-base, allowing easy access onto and off the Weighbridge. These features make for a first in portable weighbridges in Africa, says Spannenberg. Modern load cells have greatly simplified the installation of weighbridges, which are now predominantly installed above ground. This feature makes for easier access and cleaning, he says. Leases are offered from six to 60 months. “Even though it is made of steel and reinforced concrete, we can pick it up, load it onto a flatbed and install it somewhere else,” says Spangenberg.