Artisan bread’s high-hydration formulas and long floor times make them more susceptible than most formulations to variables such as humidity and time. 

“These factors mean the dough is developing and is an ever-changing organism,” said John Giacoio, Rheon USA. “Because the dough is alive that means that even in a few minutes it is changing. As the dough sits, gas is developing and the structure of the dough is expanding. For this reason, your equipment must adapt to the dough as these changes are happening.”  

The newest controls allow equipment to do just that. Rheon’s lines, for example, are designed with a sensor that centers the dough on the belt and adjusts the speed of the line based on how the dough is flowing. 

“A line that adapts to these changes automatically takes a lot of pressure off the operators’ responsibilities,” Giacoio continued. “It also ensures the quality of the end product is consistent.” 

The amount of data these latest controls can collect allows bakers to really home in on what is going wrong with the dough or the process. 

“Production lines adapt to changes in the dough by use of technology to measure product rate, hydration levels, floor time, weight, temperature, visual presentation and/or other parameters affecting the final product,” said Matt Zielsdorf, global category manager, specialty bread and pastries, Middleby Bakery Group. “The ability of the system to sense real-time product conditions early in the process, before baking, allows our customers the opportunity to react and make corrections early in the process to ensure optimal quality.”

Feedback loops tied to sensors adjust upstream equipment to accommodate the specs those downstream sensors are reading. 

“This can be cascade controls on sheeting lines or checkweighers with automatic feedback control to the divider,” said Joe Scarpa, lead electrical engineer, Gemini Bakery Equipment. “Inline quality control vision systems can detect product variations in volume, size and col-or.”

This level of data collection enables changes to be made automatically and in real time, which prevents waste. 

“Modern systems often include sensors or weighing belts that provide immediate feedback on the dough’s condition,” explained Nick Magistrelli, vice president of sales, Rademaker USA. “This allows bakers to make quick or automatic adjustments, if something deviates from the ideal conditions, preventing potential quality issues.”

Fritsch can incorporate Multivac’s Smart Services into the production line, which detects even the smallest of disturbances in production. This portfolio of tools tracks pro-duction metrics, determines the root cause of unplanned downtime and monitors overall equipment effectiveness.

Machine learning is making these systems even more precise. AMF uses machine learning in its Bakery Intelligence portfolio to continuously improve product quality and machine efficiency. The system not only tracks data but uses that information to automatically adapt production to minimize waste and turn out a consistently in-spec finished product. 

In the past this knowledge was held within the confines of the mind of an experienced baker on the production floor. But as those bakery veterans retire, these data systems are getting advanced enough to at least support the less experienced baker with some much-needed knowledge. 

“It is essentially taking the knowledge from the subject matter experts that have been doing it many decades and creating a digital warehouse of information and controls processes to help make decisions that these craftsmen make without even thinking about it,” Zielsdorf explained.

Much of the same technology that allows a production line to automatically adjust to changes in dough characteristics also speeds up changeovers. 

“Today’s artisan lines come with programmable controls that allow bakers to set specific parameters for different recipes,” Magistrelli explained. “This means they can easily switch between different types of bread or adjust recipes without needing to reconfigure the entire line manually.” 

By selecting the right recipe on the HMI, the production line automatically adjusts sheeting rollers and dividers to sheet to a different re-duction and divide by a different weight. This ensures that the line is adapted correctly every time and minimizes human error and opportunities for waste. 

“When making a baguette, you need a thinner and wider dough sheet, but when making a boule, you need a thicker but more narrow dough sheet,” Giacoio explained. “Having the ability to change the dough sheet at the front of the line drastically reduces dough trim.” 

While programmable recipe controls make changeovers happen with the touch of a button, the production line must be designed with flexibility in mind. That requires all the machine components to be present. This means modular equipment and quick-change makeup tools. 

“Various component options allow for a versatile line that produces many products,” said David Kollar, senior regional sales manager, Rondo North America. “For example, Rondo’s Smart Bread line can create ciabatta, high-hydration bread, baguettes and rounded breads from 60 grams to 1 kg be-cause of its modular design. The design can include our Rondobot, which automatically rounds the bread for you.” 

Gemini also designs modular lines with integrated controls to enable quick changeovers. The control systems are also menu driven and the production line can be configured based on the bread being run. These lines can make round rolls and buns, long-moulded products and Kaiser rolls. 

AMF Tromp sheeting lines allow bakers to modify their processes and expand their product portfolios with quick changeovers. The equipment’s recipe management software allows operators to intuitively use the equipment, even through changeovers. 

“With the ability to run 90% of the world’s bread types on AMF Tromp sheeting lines, we’re able to design customized, modular systems that grow and expand as capacities or trends change,” said Diana Boxey, global marketing director, AMF Bakery Systems . 

Mecatherm’s M-Plan digital tool allows bakers to run production simulations to plan their optimal production schedule. This program allows them to simulate changeovers and determine the best situation. 

“As a result, they can prevent is-sues from arising during real pro-duction changeovers,” said Franck Ellenbogen, sales director North America, Mecatherm.

Automation and artisan no longer have to be at odds. With the right technology in place, artisan bakers can improve their product quality, operational efficiency and ease their labor challenges.

This article is an excerpt from the September 2024 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Artisan Bread Processing, click here.