Something of interest from the United Kingdom Weighing Federation (UKWF) site. It seems this may be a valid method to get the traders not in compliance to come into compliance. I'm sure most of those scales in imperial, still in use, are old, and are no longer accurate. Any comments on this article and its possible part in forcing the traders to comply with the metric regulations?
Euric 31/03/2003 Weighing Industry Calls for Licensing Scheme to Enforce Weights & Measures Press Release in response to the recent National Audit Office report which revealed substantial evidence of the use of inaccurate equipment and of inconsistent and irregular checks by Tradings Standards Departments. "The UK Weighing Federation is asking the Department of Trade and Industry to introduce a licensing scheme to require scale manufacturers to carry out regular verification checks on weighing equipment used for trade. The move follows the publication of a National Audit Office report which revealed substantial evidence of the use of inaccurate equipment and of inconsistent and irregular checks by Trading Standards Departments. With around �1 billion worth of retail goods sold by quantity in the UK every week, the NAO says the effect of inaccurate weights and measures can be significant for the economy as a whole. Martin Tumelty, President of the UKWF, says: "In the interests of fair trading and consumer protection, it is to everyone's benefit that weighing equipment is accurate and legal. In most cases, any problems are simply due to wear and tear - a scale is like a car and functions best if it receives regular maintenance and checks. "Currently, the only way of ensuring calibration checks is through Trading Standards, but Weights and Measures is just one of hundreds of pieces of legislation they are required to enforce and this report proves that they are struggling to cope. The UK scale industry has the resources and the specialist knowledge to take over this responsibility and provide regular verification to consistent national standards." Similar industry-run schemes are already operating successfully in Europe. In France, it is a legal obligation that every scale is checked by a licensed verifier every two years, with details of every inspection and repair recorded in a service log book. Holland also requires scale users to call in a licensed verifier to recalibrate their equipment on a regular basis. HYPERLINK "http://www.ukwf.org.uk/"; http://www.ukwf.org.uk/ --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system ( HYPERLINK "http://www.grisoft.com). Version" http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.538 / Virus Database: 333 - Release Date: 2003-11-10 --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.538 / Virus Database: 333 - Release Date: 2003-11-10
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