What is Calibration?
Calibration refers to the process of standardizing or adapting measurement equipment in order to obtain more accurate results. During calibration, the technician will measure the piece of equipment against the baseline to see if it fits. If the equipment measurements do not meet the acceptable accuracy factor defined by the standard, a trained technician will make adjustments until this is done.
Different instruments will require a different calibration process. For example, a calibration lab will calibrate sensors differently from thermometers. Often, you can hire experts to come to your facility to calibrate the equipment, or you can send the equipment to a lab for calibration.Different instruments will require a different calibration process. For example, a calibration lab will calibrate sensors differently from thermometers. Often times, you can hire experts to come to your facility to calibrate the equipment, or you can send the equipment to a lab for calibration.
Why Do We Need to Calibrate Equipment?
Over time, the accuracy of any measuring device will begin to decline. Typically, this reduction in accuracy is due to normal wear and tear of the various components but may also be due to a harmful environment or mechanical or electrical shock. The attenuation factor of the measurement equipment may vary depending on the environment and type. Due to this decline in measurement accuracy, organizations with measurement equipment prefer to calibrate on a regular basis. By calibrating your equipment, you are giving it the accuracy it needs to do its job properly. The calibration of the measuring devices also ensures that a high level of product quality is maintained. The reason for calibrating the hardware is reliability. When you calibrate your instruments regularly, you know your measuring device is accurate and will read your command according to other measuring devices. Calibration is essential if you care about the accuracy and consistency of your measuring instruments.
4 Reasons for Calibration
When a company calibrates its equipment, there are several benefits to it. Some of these benefits include a longer instrument life span, greater safety assurance, greater savings, and easier certification. At Gulf Coast Calibration, we calibrate our customers’ equipment to deliver these benefits and always have accurate measurement devices.
Find out more about the four main reasons we calibrate your hardware below:
- Ensure Safety:
When you use calibration equipment for critical processes, safety is paramount. Even minor inaccuracies can cause the device to malfunction or give false information about how safe something is, leading to injury or damage to the equipment. Regular calibration of the equipment enables accurate measurements to be obtained and hazardous situations to be avoided.
As calibration improves safety, many industries use calibration to protect their assets and personnel. Some industries in which calibration is crucial to safety are manufacturing, medical, and food processing.
- Save Money:
Calibrating your equipment according to the recommended schedules can save you a lot of money. As hardware calibration prevents accuracy errors, it helps manufacturers reduce manufacturing errors that can lead to product failure. Likewise, inaccurate food temperature measurements can lead to spoilage. In research laboratories, inaccuracy can lead to erroneous readings by workers, rendering any results meaningless. No matter what industry you work in, mistakes will ultimately increase costs.
Calibrating your equipment saves you money as you don’t waste money throwing away defective products or extra staff costs when they have to repeat tests in the lab. You will also save money and increase your income by reducing the costs of stopping processes and restarting them as soon as your team discovers an inaccuracy. By reducing errors, you optimize your organization better and make the most of your equipment.
- Increased Lifespan of Equipment:
Every measuring device will wear out over time. Instead of throwing your device away and replacing it with a new one when it ceases to provide accurate measurements, you can calibrate it to restore normal levels. After the old equipment is calibrated, it should perform to the original standards. Thanks to this, you can use the device for much longer.
Calibration can also help pay attention to how quickly a piece of equipment breaks down, helping you observe factors such as ambient pressure or specific applications that are causing more wear. With this information, you can make adjustments to prevent faster wear and tear and keep your tools in better condition for a longer period.
- Assure Compliance with Certification:
Many industries require companies to have the appropriate certifications in order to operate legally. You will likely need a regulatory review before proceeding with certain tasks. Often these certifications require confirmation that you are calibrating your equipment and are reliable enough to get accurate results. If you regularly calibrate your equipment, it will be easier for you to get certified by the relevant regulatory bodies.
Calibration enables your equipment to obtain accurate results by helping you pass certification tests on the accuracy of your devices.
Call us to discuss your calibration needs at:
713.944.3139.
