Campbell Scientific (Canada) Corp.

by Victoria JL Fisher

Campbell Scientific (Canada) was founded as a Canadian-owned subsidiary of the Utah company Campbell Scientific in 1970 by Claude Labine. Labine had encountered Campbell Scientific’s dataloggers during an oilsands project near Fort McMurray. Seeing the potential in the instruments, he negotiated the right to sell the dataloggers in Canada under the new company. Although Campbell Scientific (Canada) never manufactured the dataloggers, it did modify and repackage the imported models for use in Canadian environments, including protection against colder weather, and longer operation without being serviced.

This graph appears in an article by Claude Labine about improvements made to the snow depth sensor design.

Like Ontario company Guildine Instruments, Campbell Scientific (Canada) found an early niche in commercialising and improving existing instruments for broader sale. This CSMAL01 snow-depth sensor was initially developed based on an earlier design as a low-cost, reliable instrument by the Atmospheric Environment Services of Environment Canada to remotely monitor changes in snow depth. It works by measuring the time elapsed for echoes of ultrasonic sound pulses it emits and is intended to collect and transmit data for months unattended.

This is an example of the prototype model, licensed for production to Campbell Scientific (Canada) in 1988, and marking the first product developed by Campbell Scientific (Canada) independently. Following the production and first uses of of this model, the company made improvements to the prototype model to improve power efficiency, survive prolonged wet weather, and record even the lowest-density snow. This resulted in several later models; the instrument is still available for sale from Campbell Scientific (Canada) in 2024, alongside other weather and meteorological monitoring equipment.

The Campbell Scientific (Canada) CSMAL01 snow depth sensor.
The Campbell Scientific (Canada) CSMAL01 snow depth sensor.
The Campbell Scientific (Canada) CSMAL01 snow depth sensor.
The Campbell Scientific (Canada) CSMAL01 snow depth sensor.
A graph taken from an article by Claude Labine, "Automatic Monitoring of Snow Depth" (1996). The graph depicts 1988-89 remote measurements of snow depth of the Agassiz Ice Cap on Ellesmere Island taken by an ultrasonic snow depth sensor like this one.
Two graphs in an article by Barry Goodison et al, "An Inexpensive Remote Snow-Depth Gauge: An Assessment" (1984), which describes the development of an ultrasonic snow-depth guage. The graphs show measurements of snow depth by a remote gauging instrument made in Toronto, Ontario and Dorset, Ontario in comparison with traditionally-taken measurements made with a ruler. This comparison is meant to prove the effectiveness of the snow-depth sensor, and also reveals flaws to overcome.
A newspaper article appearing in the Calgary Herald which appeared in July 2, 1994, describing the ongoing work of Campbell Scientific (Canada). Claude Labine, founder and owner of Campbell Scientific (Canada), is pictured adjusting a meteorological instrument. Headline reads, "Company finds rugged new roles for data-sensing technology."

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Timeline

1974 – Campbell Scientific founded in Logan, Utah.

1976 – Campbell Scientific (Canada) founded in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, by Claude Labine to sell modified Campbell Scientific data loggers in Canada.

1988 – Company licenses a prototype of snow depth sensor from Hydrometeorology Division of the Canadian Atmospheric Environment Service. (Labine, C. “Automatic Monitoring of Snow Depth”)

01-01-2024 – Company active at 14532 131 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB

Snow Depth Sensor

Campbell Scientific (Canada) Corp.

042 - Campbell Scientific Canada - Calgary Herald (July 2, 1994)

Sources

Caillet, A., D’Aillon, F.G., Zawadzki, I. “An ultrasound low power sonar for snow thickness measurements” Proceedings of the Eastern Snow Conference, (June 1979): 108-116

“Company finds rugged new roles for data-sensing technology” Calgary Herald, July 2, 1994: 77

Gubler, H. “An inexpensive remote snow depth gauge based on ultrasonic wave reflection from the snow surface” Journal of Glaciology Vol. 27, No. 95 (1981): 157-163

Labine, C. “Automatic Monitoring of Snow Depth” Instruments and Methods (1996): 179-183 (https://arc.lib.montana.edu/snow-science/objects/issw-1996-179-183.pdf [24-01-24])