Drums of chemicals will be weighed for many reasons. The gross weight may be known for shipping purposes. The net weight may be wanted for inventory, or to determine usage in various processes. Formulation actually takes place in the drum, where an array of ingredients is combined to produce the desired results.

The very common drum size is 55 gallons and the diameter of that drum is about 24". For a liquid content, the packed drum may weigh from 500 lb to about 800 lb. A drum scale should have a number of specifications to be suitable to weigh this type of drum. First and foremost, it should have a capacity of 1000 lb. The readability of the digital meter should be accurate enough for the application, which would usually be 2/10 of a pound. It is also vital that the scale have a low profile to make it easy to roll drums onto or off of the scale platform.

A drum scale might be a subject to difficult abuse. If it is loaded onto the scale by hand, there could be a significant amount of shock loading. If a forklift hits the scale from the side, there would be a very high level of side loading. This sort of use can easily harm the scale's load cells. In order to reduce this type of failure, use load cells made from stainless steel. These show better resistance to this type of abuse than either aluminum or plated steel, which are typically used for drum scales. The stainless steel would also tolerate a more corrosive environment, presenting a longer life time operation.

The scale platform must be very stiff in order to assure the best accuracy. As sheet metal construction is often used, a welded frame will offer the best operation. Usually, a tread plate pattern on the platform will offer the best non-slip surface. While pounds are the most common units used in the United States, kilograms is the standard for many industrial applications. A front panel pushbutton allows the operator to toggle between these two units for handiness. Another significant feature is the ability to subtract the weight of the drum, so that only the net weight of the contents is shown. The tare button would perform this operation. The net and gross buttons allow the operator to show the weight in either format.

Generally a drum scale would be in a location where it might be plugged into a standard wall outlet. But there are conditions where that may not be available. This might include mobile applications or when the scales have to be used out in the field. So the scales may be provided with a 12 vdc vehicle input, or could be used with a rechargeable battery. Since the power consumption of the scale is very low, a vehicle supply will not drain the vehicle battery. The alternate choice of a rechargeable battery lets the scale to run up to 40 hours of operating time between charging. The battery pack itself can be easily located inside the scale indicator, so not to interfere with operation. Charging time could be as short as four hours for a full charge.