Dial indicator calibration · Manufacturing

Dial indicator calibration for manufacturing

Indicators in Perth machine shops check runout on lathes and mills, flatness on surface plates and go/no-go dimensions in production fixtures. When an indicator is the deciding instrument on a fixture, its calibration record is what defends every part the fixture passed.

Dial indicators measure runout, flatness and small displacements where a few hundredths matter. AmpTech calibrates plunger and lever-type dial indicators and digital indicators in our Caversham lab, checking the reading against traceable references at points across the travel in both directions.

Interval in manufacturing

12 months (6 months on production fixtures)

ISO 9001; gauge control plan

Setting the interval

Twelve months is standard for indicators in general workshop use. Indicators built into fixtures on a production line, where the reading is the accept/reject decision, are often kept on 6 months.

What the calibration covers

Reading at points across the travel against a traceable reference, in the rising and falling directions
Hysteresis — the difference between rising and falling readings at the same point
Repeatability at a fixed point
Zero return and free movement of the plunger or lever
Dial or display condition and bezel operation

What your certificate records

The certificate format manufacturing procurement and audit teams ask for: the equipment under test, its serial number, the reference instruments used, as-found and as-left readings, environmental conditions and a traceability statement, plus the dial indicator-specific items below.

As-found and as-left readings at each point in rising and falling directions
Hysteresis and repeatability results
Reference standards used, with traceability
Environmental conditions at the time of calibration

Standards & frameworks in manufacturing

ISO 9001 quality management system
ISO 10012 (referenced) — measurement management
AS/NZS 3760 for portable electrical equipment on plant
Customer-specific PPAP / quality requirements

How manufacturing clients get dial and digital indicators to us

Calibration is performed in our Caversham lab — not on site. We collect from and deliver back to manufacturing workshops and offices across Perth, and instruments from regional sites come by freight or via your Perth base.

Canning Vale and Bibra Lake manufacturing precincts
Welshpool and Kewdale fabrication and assembly workshops
Malaga light industrial and trade workshops
Osborne Park commercial and QC laboratories

Working with manufacturing procurement

We work with quality and production teams to align calibration intervals with your control plan, supply certificates that map directly to your gauge register, and schedule recall reminders so nothing falls out of cal during a production run.

FAQ

Dial indicator calibration for manufacturing FAQs

Can you calibrate indicators that are built into a fixture?

Send the indicator itself — most can be removed from the fixture. Calibration is done in our lab, so the indicator needs to come to us rather than the fixture.

Do you calibrate lever-type test indicators as well as plunger types?

Yes. Both are calibrated across their travel; lever-type indicators are checked over their shorter range with attention to repeatability, which is what they are used for.

Should I send the magnetic base or stand?

Not necessary — the stand does not affect the indicator reading. Send the indicator itself, with any contact points you normally use.

Keep reading

Manufacturing

Manufacturing calibration in Perth

Perth manufacturers depend on accurate dimensional and temperature instruments to keep production within tolerance. AmpTech calibrates them against reference standards traceable to national standards and gives you the documentation a quality audit expects to see.

Learn more

12 months