The original test lasted just 20 minutes, but it enabled the company to modify the rack and, in this case, the instrument panel as well. Air Cylinder Beats Harsh Environments Pharmaceutical and chemical environments are often subjected to caustic materials. A vessel or container is placed onto a Mettler-Toledo scale and filled with either an end product or a substance needed for an internal process. Recessed into a pit, the scale is lifted pneumatically out of it for inspection and for a cleaning of the underside of the scale and the pit itself. When the platform rises out of the pit, the cylinders engage a self- deploying safety system that prevents the platform from falling back into the pit in case there is a loss of pneumatic pressure.
Bars deploy after the cylinders retract so that the safety latches engage the cylinder heads.
When the bridge comes back down into the pit, the safety cylinders are again engaged to release the safety mechanism. Mettler-Toledo chose the Airpel cylinder because of its wiping capability. The company had used other brands of cylinders that seized over time because the corrosive material or moisture got inside the actual cylinder body. By contrast, the Airpel cylinder's seals ensured its integrity. While some of the old cylinders failed in less than a year, the new cylinders have operated without fail, some for more than two years.