48 | KITCHENS | CATERING AND HOSPITALIT Y
FUNCTION JUNCTION
Is technology evolving to suit caterers, or are caterers evolving to suit technology? Tallulah Speed spoke to two university kitchens about their approach to equipment and how it impacts their operation
L
ike death and taxes, ‘advances in technology’ has the ring of eternal inevitability to it, as new equipment
supplants old, and developments that address a breadth of everyday obstacles are brought out at an ever-increasing pace. A natural focus of this furious innovation is the kitchen, with meal- making being one of the most diversely functional and physically rigorous activities still widespread in a world that has otherwise moved primarily online. From ovens to freezers, modern kitchens are entirely reliant on
technology, and modern commercial kitchens doubly so. But when it comes to kiting them out, should it be advances in equipment dictating the menus or changes to menus dictating the equipment? We spoke to two universities that both boast top catering operations, but take very different approaches to technology behind the scenes. Gavin Brown is General Manager at
the University of Sheffield, an HEI with a highly lauded and extensive catering division that covers 15 cafes and an international food court, some of which are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As the food and drink offering has grown within the University so too has the workforce, and in employing students they have created
a much more flexible workforce, with shifts aligned to complement the peak hours of the business. For Brown, keeping abreast of
new innovations is a vital part of the commercial kitchen. “We have built our menus and our business around equipment improvements driven by technology,” he says. Currently at the University of Sheffield that means impingement ovens, for a style of cooking that uses air-movement principles similar to convection ovens. While conventional convection ovens move air using a fan, impingement cookers feature nozzles that funnel the heat directly onto the foodstuff, for quicker and more efficient cooking. “The cooking process is fast and efficient
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