Author Archives: eds55precsys

Quality, Made in the U.S.A., and Inflation

It’s been a while since my last post, so I wanted to cover a few topics in this one.

Quality: We make high-quality products. Our PWLs are durable and to date, we haven’t received any for repair. Our TATKs are handcrafted and calibrated. We often receive requests from companies looking for higher quality tooling than they currently have.

Made in the USA: We’re a US company based out of Pittsburgh, PA. We make many of our own parts and the rest we buy from US companies, which also carry the Made in the USA label. The only notable exception is the micrometer heads for our PWLs, which we buy in the US, but which are made by Mitutoyo.

Inflation: If you’ve done business with us for a while, you know we’ve kept our prices the same for several years. We anticipate needing to raise our prices in the coming months as we replenish our inventory with parts that cost more due to inflation.

PWLs and TATKs

It’s been a while since we last posted and a quick update is long overdue. In the past few years, we’ve added the Tightwire Alignment Tool Kits (TATKs) to our portfolio in addition to the Precision Water Levels (PWLs). Both are high quality tools that are made in the U.S.A. We continue to assemble them at Equipment Development Services in Schenectady, NY and continue to operate out of our office in Pittsburgh, PA.

We are open and safe!

In light of the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, please note that our facilities are fully operational. We have excellent disease containment procedures in place and do not have any reported infections or symptoms.

The PWL-2 Has Arrived!

The Precision Water Level (PWL) version 2 is now available. It is more accurate than our PWL-1, less impacted by temperature, and additional water cups to expand the system are priced much lower. PWL-2s utilize many of the same components and processes as PWL-1s allowing owners of PWL-1s to upgrade with minimal cost. Please contact us or see our PWL page for more details.

New Standard PWL Kits are Here!

Our new Standard PWL Kits use precision made urethane water cups, which are durable, highly accurate, and inexpensive. An entire 4-cup kit is under $2,000, providing most users with a full return on investment in a single use. Visit our PWL page to learn more.

4-cup Standard Kit

PWL’s Patent Protection

The PWL device, system, and method used to measure level and flatness are protected by U.S. Patents 9,587,940 and 9,273,988 “Precision Hydrostatic Level and Flatness Measuring Device, System and Method”. The PWL-2 is protected by these patents and elements specific to the PWL-2 are patent-pending. The use of any tool to measure level or flatness according to the methods recited in our claims that we (EDS Precision Systems or Equipment Development Services) do not manufacture infringes on our patent, regardless of the reason the tool was created. It’s also important to know that we haven’t authorized anyone else to make, sell, advertise, or import the tools recited in our claims. Owners of our PWLs are granted a license to use our method only for a PWL device we manufacture. For example, if you purchase an eight-cup PWL kit, with a second micrometer assembly and four additional cups that we made, you are receiving a license to use our method to conduct one level or flatness measurement at a time per micrometer assembly at one measurement location per cup, so in this case two measurements at a time at twelve measurement locations. In other words, we’re selling a tool that should not be copied. Never purchase any duplicates or knock-offs and please let us know if you come across any. While we will rigorously enforce our patent, we hope to avoid this by offering great value through low prices, excellent customer service, and a high quality tool that often pays for itself within one or two uses. To learn more, visit our PWL page.

Featured GE Supplier

We’re happy to announce that we’re the only GE supplier in Virginia featured on the Faces of GE website. Our Precision Water Level (PWL) reduces the time needed to take measurements on large leveling and flatness projects by 80% or more. GE saves nearly two days of time with every steam turbine assembly they do (which doesn’t count the time savings when leveling the turbine foundation), resulting in a return on investment (ROI) for the PWL of less than 6 months. To put that in perspective, at the 2016 International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago, the consensus was that an ROI of 2 years is normal for a new tool. Update: Although we’re still listed as a Virginia business, we’ve moved to Pennsylvania and the link to our interview on the Faces of GE website does not work.

Made in the U.S.A.

We very much appreciate our U.S. customers asking if our Precision Water Levels are made in the United States, especially since we are a veteran-owned business. The answer is, yes, all of our PWL parts are made in the U.S.A and all assembly, calibration, customer support, and other office functions are done in the U.S.A.