Weights and Measures Act 1889

Increasing concerns over short weight and short measure in the industrialised cities led to the Weights and Measures Act 1889.  The consequences caused concern among manufacturers of scales about a ‘level playing field’ and a conference was held at the Queens Hotel in Birmingham in January 1890 chaired by W.B. Avery of W & T Avery.  It was attended by many scale manufacturers, especially those in the Midlands, such as Day & Millward, who manufactured certain machines for Herbert & Sons.

 

At a subsequent meeting with the President of the Board of Trade, the anomalies in enforcement of the new Act by different local inspectors were pointed out, such as ‘only beam scales will satisfy the test in some towns, whilst others demand counter scales’.