BC Hydro is a Crown corporation, owned by the government and people of British Columbia. Its job is to generateand purchase, reliable, affordable electricity for its customers. Operating 31 hydroelectric facilities and two thermal generating plants the bulk of its generation comes from dams on both the Peace and Columbia rivers. With a network of over 78,000 kilometers of transmission and distribution lines this large utilities company is both complex in its immense structure yet simple in its safety and efficiency strategies.

With a multitude of operations this utilities company was looking for a solution to cable weighing and stores activities. In some of their remote applications floor scales and crane scales are impractical for the rough terrain vehicles lifting the heavy cable reels. In their stores facilities at various locations both inbound and out bound inventory needs to be weighed for safety of racking capacity and the potential of overloading trailers. In addition to the practicality of being able to weigh multiple loads using a lift truck, and because of the expansive operation of hydroelectric power, the system would have to be simple enough that it would easily integrate into their operation. The system would also need to be intuitive as to not impede normal operation of the lift trucks. Durable enough that it could be sent into remote areas on larger trucks. Supportable for specific documentation and safety requirements for a public organization that puts the safety of its people first.

IVDT has been manufacturing lift truck scales for over 30 years and has developed the most accurate, durable and simple to use on-board systems on the market. With years of experience covering all industrial applications several options exist to provide a variety of solutions. In this particular application it was determined that the SkidWeigh ED2-AT on-board check weighing scale with accumulative totaling would be the unit of choice. The simple ‘lift and weigh’ concept provided the operators with an accurate weight read out in seconds with no additional operation requirement. The one button weighing and reset of the accumulative totaling function provides them a valuable tool for adding loads for outbound logistics. The SkidWeigh ED2 is the only scale on the market where all components are designed for the harshest environments and able to stand up to northern Canadian winters. This means dependability and reliability for continual use without interruption. In addition, we were able to design operator usage and calibration stickers to adhere directly to the truck mast so that information would always be present regardless of tenure of the operator. With this kind of accuracy, functionality and durability BC Hydro’s SkidWeigh fleet has grown in excess of 80 units.