1- Calibration, no matter which system is used the need to be calibrated is critical so as to determine the amount of material that is being used.
a. To perform this is a manual operation of capturing the material and weighing so as to check the results.
b. Is the amount correct?
2- Uniformity,
a. Is the amount uniform on multiple captures?
3- Slippage of the screw
a. In lost in weight and timer type this is not an issue except for incorporation into our raw materials.
b. In non timer units this is an issue. The result is usage of more colorant /additive
i. Since our use is based on a shot volume when adding more materials which are usually priced at $4 to $15 per pound. The addition of only 5 additional grams per shot of additive is $0.045 to $0.16 per shot.
4- Using too large a unit.
a. When adding the additive via automatic system what is the volume of usage, reliabity, and repeatability of the unit using?
i. Is it accurate for 1 pound shots but inaccurate for 1 ounce shots?
b. If the unit is not adjustable for the range you are using it for it is not good. A few units will have different screws for example so they can be interchanged.
c. Unit size is most often overlooked, which can result in poor quality of the product.
5- The let down ratio changed and was not noted.
a. Real world here as people try to save monies the let down ratio may change thus the level of additive into our product changes and no one picks up on the fact until product is incorrect.
No matter which method is used being correct and attentive to what is going on will eliminate issues and save monies.
