MIXING & DEPOSITING


operational and cost advantages, many bakery operators also select continuous mixing based on the promise of increased product consistency and quality.


A study undertaken by Exact Mixing looked at two side-by- side production lines – the only difference between them was that one line was supplied by a continuous dough system, while the other line was supplied by a batch system. Both lines produced the same small snack products from low-pressure extruders. This arrangement allowed the dough consistency to be determined by measuring the piece weights. Consistent dough would extrude consistently and make consistent piece weights, while inconsistent dough would vary the flow of the dough through the extruder die resulting in varying piece weights. The trial was conducted for one hour on each line. Each weight sample consisted of 20 pieces and a sample was taken every 30 seconds. The continuous dough production line was found to deliver much more consistent dough. This is because creating dough in discrete batches will always introduce slight variations from batch to batch. While these may seem manageable, they will lead to inconsistency over time. Trying to manage quality, while chasing these variables will add to the already higher and ongoing labour cost of batch mixing. On top of the inherent variation introduced by the mixing process itself, batch mixing implies that the batch of dough will spend some amount of time waiting to be processed after being mixed. In this period of time the dough will change due to aging, environmental conditions, and the interactions of the dough ingredients. So, while continuous mixers will represent a significantly higher initial capital investment, over time they will require much less labour to operate and will result in better final product consistency, even at higher production rates, argued Jim. Throughput is another important consideration for payback. In the case of batch mixing, there is a linear relationship between throughput and equipment cost. If you double the throughput requirement you will typically double the equipment cost. On the other hand, when doubling the throughput requirements for a continuous mixing system the cost will typically increase in the range of just 20%. This is because the feeding equipment remains almost the same cost no matter the rate. As a result, as throughput requirements increase continuous mixing becomes easier to justify when compared to batch mixing.


What we have learned is that there is more to choosing High shear mixer chosen for pilot project


In preparation for the launch of a new protein bar ready- to-mix product, a leading whey ingredient supplier turned to Winkworth.


With the growth in protein bar retail value expected to increase, the customer needed a pilot size mixer that could conduct trials during the development phase, and which would replicate large scale industrial production methods. It’s existing bakery mixers, used for similar pilots, were not able to mix the dense ingredients of whey protein isolate and dairy proteins sufficiently to be


effective. The application required a high torque kneading and folding mixer that could effectively mix 5kg batches. Winkworth recommended a stainless-steel high shear


mixer, which is suited to mixing, kneading and blending of dense materials. Featuring twin heavy duty Z blades and a manually operated hydraulic tilting mechanism, the 10-litre capacity of Winkworth’s pilot mixer and this was small enough to reduce waste, yet large enough to be representative of production reality to enable scalability of the product when it went into full production.


bakeryproduction.co.uk Kennedy’s Bakery Production April/May 2023 23


a bakery mixing solution than might at first meet the eye. When considering a mixing solution, it is also important to take into account the interaction of the mixing process with other processes on the production line, to help ensure greater consistency of the finished product and to minimise waste.


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