About Rice Lake Weighing Systems
Rice Lake Weighing Systems is an international leader in the manufacture and distribution of weight-related products and process-control equipment. Within this ISO 9001 registered company, progressive new technologies merge with the wisdom of industry experience to develop the future of weighing through cutting-edge research and design.
In 1946, Donald B. Johnson and Warren Thomas opened the doors of Thomas & Johnson Scale Service in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, where there was a growing demand for scale service from creameries and cheese processing enterprises. Their founding principal remains the same today: "Take care of the customer and the rest of the business will take care of itself."
In the late 1950s, scale dealers were in dire need of scale repair parts. Donald B. fostered the idea of refinishing old pivots and bearings so customers would not have to wait for new parts to be manufactured. He purchased a large quantity of WWII ammunition boxes and sent them to people he met at national scale conferences, offering to refinish any scale parts sent back in the ammunition boxes for fifty cents apiece.—with a guaranteed a two- to three-day turnaround.
The 1960s saw Thomas & Johnson publishing their first Pivot & Bearing catalog, displaying eighteen sizes of pivots and bearings as well as advertising a 35 percent savings compared to the same parts offered by the original manufacturer.
In 1971 Thomas & Johnson Scale Service became Rice Lake Bearing, Inc. In the mid-1970s, Donald B. saw that the United States was considering conversion to all metric measurements and realized his scale distributors would need new metric counterpoise weights. With an advanced metrology lab and expertise in the field, the company became a major supplier of precision test weights and recalibration.
During the 1980's, Rice Lake began to include electronic parts and components in their catalog. In 1986, Rice Lake Bearing became Rice Lake Weighing Systems and strong application and engineering support set the bar for the entire industry.
The 1990s and turn of a new millennium welcomed Rice Lake into the global market. Support facilities were opened throughout North America in Jasper, Ala. and Fernley, Nev. as well as internationally in Mexico, Brazil and India. In 2009, Rice Lake acquired FlexWeigh Division of Enduro Systems and in 2011, opened a European division and acquired NORAC Systems International, a Canadian-based manufacturer of agricultural weighing equipment. In 2013, Rice Lake acquired belt scale manufacturer Master Engineering in the Netherlands.
Today, Rice Lake offers over 30,000 weighing, control, data collection and communication products with over one million items in stock and available for same- or next-day shipping. Rice Lake continues to lead the industry in technological advances and quality products such as indicators/controllers, heavy capacity scales, floor scales, balances, medical scales, retail scales and dimensioning.