Choosing a Custom Pressure Gauge: It is Being Made to Your Specification; Get Everything You Want

When specifying a custom pressure gauge, it is often the case that the face gets all the attention. Care is taken to make sure that the correct colors are used to highlight the desired ranges for different zones. Also that the logo is situated where is should be and looks proper. After all, once you approve how it looks, it is all but written in stone.
So while the appearance of the gauge is gone over with a fine toothed comb, its mechanical properties are often ignored. You will find many examples of a gauge with a nice looking custom face, which is threaded into an adapter fitting and then threaded into its point of measure. This is often not necessary.
Most of the expense in custom pressure gauge is in accounting for a custom SKU and the lower volume production run. Maintaining drawings and artwork etc is a significant cost that requires constant vigilance. And when a gauge that is not a standard item for the manufacturer is produced, it is almost always at a lower volume than their normal production run.

Given that this is the case, why not customize the mechanical features of the gauge to fit your application. There are many areas that can be modified in such a way that it is not only economical, but will save money when installation and extra fittings are taken into account.

Take the example of one OEM in the food industry. They use a long nipple and coupler to span the two inches from the point of measure to where there is room for the gauge.

That is three connections where only one is required. Three leak points instead of one.
They were able to get a pressure gauge with the fitting long enough to fit in the tight space and seal in the manifold. The extra cost to them per gauge was less than $1.
The two fittings needed to adapt their gauge to their manifold cost them about that. The labor to assemble the two fittings to the gauge combined with the fittings cost well more than $1.

Not only did they save money, but they also turned one of the most difficult parts of their assembly into one of the easiest. They took an assembly with three leak points and made it an assembly with one leak point.
It is not just the face or the fitting that can be modified economically. Almost all of the components can be modified to improve your application. If you use a panel mounted gauge, the U clamp can be modified. The length of the studs that come out the back of the gauge can also be modified.

You get the point.
When specifying a custom pressure gauge, look at your entire application. It is possible that a slight inexpensive modification to the mechanical part of gauge can give big savings to you in terms of purchase price, manufactured cost and manufacturability.

Author bio:-
Harris is the vice-president (Sales) - Libertyaz is main supplier of pressure gauges, liquid filled pressure gauge, battery powered grease guns and paintball gauges to OEM customers across the United States.