Baking & Snack - June 2023 - 84

MIXING
Automated systems in
high-volume bakeries
can bolster capacity
while providing the flexibility
to meet constantly
shifting market demands.
VMI
suring easy access to bearings so greasing them is quicker
or eliminating the number of spare parts.
" From a labor standpoint, AMF uses a gearbox tilt
mixer that requires a lot less maintenance because you
only have to maintain the gear motor that's running
about four times an hour, " Mr. Bartsch said.
With the move toward larger batches and stiffer
doughs, he added, belt drives can provide shock-absorbing
protection to the gearbox to make them last longer.
" You're going to get seven to 10 years on the belt before
you have to replace it, " Mr. Bartsch said. " As a result,
you're only going to change the belt two to three times
over the 20-year life of that mixer. "
Escher Mixers, acquired by Middleby Bakery recently,
offers a double-stop transmission with two belts designed
to deliver more torque to various mixing tools as
the dough stiffens during development.
" Typically, the firming of developed dough during
the last two minutes of mixing significantly increases
the friction generated by the tool and the dough, which
could cause a belt to slip, " said Alessandro Cosaro,
Escher's founder. " Having larger pulleys and a double set
of belts drastically increases the life of the belts. "
He said Escher's industrial mixers, which hold up
to 800 kg (1,760 lbs), rely on a positive-driven, conical
system that eliminates slippage that can cause wear
and tear.
" We have reduced the maintenance as much as we
can to avoid any breakdown, " Mr. Cosaro said. " That
includes an automatic greasing unit inside the mixer
that
lubricates the bearings. The unit's PLC sounds
an alarm if the greasing system fails or if grease tanks
are empty. "
84 Baking & Snack June 2023 / www.bakingbusiness.com
Total cost of controls
To avoid pricey breakdowns, bakeries rely increasingly
on PLCs, HMIs and an alphabet of digital controls to
monitor and maintain a mixer.
" It's not new, but we have menu-selective screens to
set up parameters and even CIP parameters that are integrated
with our mixing equipment, " Mr. Peck observed.
For enhanced security, he added, E.T. Oakes also offers
RFID readers where operators use a card instead of
a password.
Many controls send out reminders about regular preventive
maintenance tasks, such as checking agitator
bearings or changing the oil in a gearbox, based on the
run time of the mixer.
" We prompt the maintenance personnel to do a task
instead of the old pen and paper system where it can
be easily overlooked, and then it's too late when a problem
arises that can lead to catastrophic failures, " Mr.
Ferree said.
The latest in technology is also providing workforce
savings. In bakeries with extended fermentation processes,
automated guided vehicles (AGVs) can save labor
with less infrastructure than in the past.
" The AGV will transfer the bowl from the mixer to
the retarder and later to the bowl hoist, " Mr. Falkenberg
said. " It's actually not complicated. AGVs are like selfdriving
forklifts. With one AGV, you can stack the mixing
bowls onto a shelf for resting, or a simple AGV will
transport the dough from point A to B or from point B
to C. "
AGVs have been around for years in warehousing and
packaging departments, but they have increasingly become
more commonplace in automated bakeries.
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Baking & Snack - June 2023

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