I heard back from the person I reached out to and this is what he has said
That is an on/off thermostat. It should work for what they're doing. When set to heat mode it should turn the CHE on if the temps drop below the set temeprature. The probe measurement is probably accurate enough. It tends to be the IR temp guns that have variation because they are reading infrared reflection which can vary depending on the surface and distance. While the probes can be defective, they are generally more reliable for the purpose of setting lighting temps.
That is an on/off thermostat. It should work for what they're doing. When set to heat mode it should turn the CHE on if the temps drop below the set temeprature. The probe measurement is probably accurate enough. It tends to be the IR temp guns that have variation because they are reading infrared reflection which can vary depending on the surface and distance. While the probes can be defective, they are generally more reliable for the purpose of setting lighting temps.