The Association was established by scale industry leaders in 1945 to provide a permanent instrumentality for coordinating the efforts of many individuals in the best interest of the public; the owners and users of scales, and scale manufacturers. 

The SMA is the only domestic organization of its type that consists solely of manufacturers and integrators of scales and scale components. As such, the SMA is often called upon to speak for the industry as a whole.

Since its inception, SMA has enjoyed an unusually high degree of respect and appreciation from the public, affiliated professionals, and government regulatory agencies.