In industrial processes, precision isn’t optional – it’s essential. Your journey to precise measurements and ultimately a high-quality product starts the moment an instrument is installed and continues through startup, commissioning, and regular calibration. Every detail matters because delays and missteps cost time, productivity, and trust. That’s why expertise needs to be applied early and decisively, addressing issues before they become problems and keeping operations moving without unnecessary downtime. When these steps are done right, everything that follows gets easier.
Startup and Commissioning: Where Accuracy Begins
Startup and commissioning are where measurement accuracy is either confirmed or compromised. Before a device goes online, installation, wiring, and power must be correct. A quick verification check helps to confirm that readings make sense, units match the process, and signals are interpreted correctly by the control system.
Many measurement issues traced back to startup are caused by configuration details that no longer match the process. A change in fluid density, product type, or operating conditions can invalidate a measurement if the device is not reconfigured accordingly. These oversights often surface as overfills, lost product, or unexplained process variation.
Startup is also where installation shortcuts become visible. Instruments installed for convenience rather than performance often produce unreliable data, such as flow meters at high points where air collects, level transmitters influenced by agitation, or temperature sensors exposed to moisture. These are common field issues and are usually preventable when experience is applied early.
Calibration: Maintaining Accuracy Over Time
Calibration isn’t a one-time event – it’s an ongoing requirement. Instruments drift over time due to wear, environmental conditions, or process changes. Regular calibration performed every 6 months to 1 year, depending on the application, ensures measurements remain accurate and compliant with industry standards. It also reduces downtime and prevents costly errors.
Some of the most common reasons for timely calibration include ensuring product quality, measurement accuracy, resolving discrepancies between lab measurements and instrument readings, and maintaining product repeatability. Here are some real-world examples:
Product quality and FDA regulations
In regulated environments, calibration isn’t optional – it’s part of proving your process is under control. Customers calibrate regularly to achieve good results and ensure compliance with FDA guidelines. Even beyond audits, this protects quality systems from relying on measurements that may no longer be trustworthy.
Managing dosing and measurement accuracy
If your formulation calls for 10% of a costly ingredient, running at 12% might feel safer, but you’re losing margins on every batch. Calibration helps keep dosing and measurement tight, so you hit the target instead of over-delivering ingredients you can’t get back.
Resolving discrepancies between lab results and field measurements
One of the clearest triggers can be a discrepancy where a lab report and the field device have variation in readings. That mismatch is exactly when calibration matters, because you need to establish which measurement is correct and bring the instrument back into agreement.
Maintaining repeatability in batch and recipe‑driven processes
For food & beverage in particular, expensive additives (like sugar and other ingredients) affect taste and cost, and customers want repeatable recipes. Calibration supports repeatability by ensuring the process is being controlled using accurate inputs – so today’s batch matches tomorrow’s.
Precision Is Built, Not Assumed
Precision is not achieved at a single point. It is built through decisions made during installation, validated through startup and commissioning, and protected through calibration over the life of the process. When these stages are handled with care, measurement becomes reliable, processes stay consistent, waste is reduced, and product quality improves. When they are overlooked, small issues surface later as quality problems, lost product, or unplanned downtime. Building precision into every stage of operation leads to better performance, safer processes, and fewer surprises.
Forberg Smith supports precision at every moment of your process, from choosing the right product for your application to startup and commissioning, onsite diagnostics, and ongoing calibration. By staying involved throughout the full lifecycle, our experts help to resolve issues early, validate performance when it matters most, and maintain confidence in every measurement as processes evolve, empowering you to achieve better outcomes at each stage.
About Bill Schultz | Senior Service Technician
Bill Schultz earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan and began his career developing a foundation in control theory while selling HVAC service and new construction projects in Ohio. He later moved into process control and instrumentation sales in Michigan, serving customers in the water and wastewater, chemical, power, and automotive industries. He joined Endress+Hauser in 2001 and continued with the organization through its transition to Forberg Smith, where he helped build and expand the authorized service group. He continues to lead the service group. Outside of work, he enjoys sailing, golfing with family and friends, snow and water skiing, and walking.