Industrial bakers are demanding freezers that offer reliability, extended run times, larger capacity and increased hygiene.

Many factors need to be addressed when purchasing a freezer. Bakers should start by considering the amount of time their product requires to freeze. Some freezer manufacturers use lab freezers to evaluate a product's freeze time. “The time requirement determines how big the freezer needs to be, and it can range from 15 min. to 60 min. or more,” says Chris Hanssen, freezer sales support and business development manager, FMC FoodTech Inc., Northfield, Minn.

In addition, bakers should consider the range of products they plan to run through each freezer and group similar products for maximum efficiency. Next, bakers must choose a belt speed that fits their capacity. “If running 200 pizzas per min., you need to be able to pull that product fast enough to prevent pile-ups, so that's where you get into fast belt speeds of 130 to 150 ft. per min,” Hanssen notes.

Bakers also should examine the plant space available, decide where the freezer out-feed will come from and check the vertical clearance needed for the product within the freezer.

The biggest decision may be whether to use a cryogenic freezer or a mechanical freezer, which dictates the type of refrigerant. Most mechanical freezing is done with ammonia. Plants located in strict zones, such as in a city, or near a school or residential area, might require a freon-type refrigerant. Some newer refrigeration systems use a CO₂ cascade system, where CO₂ is used for the low-side refrigerant and ammonia is used off the plant floor and kept in the engine room, Hanssen says.

Choose high quality

For high-production demands, consider spiral freezers from G&F Systems. These systems are custom designed for the food industry and feature PLC controls with multiple temperature sensors. Choose from a wide selection of plastic or stainless steel conveyor belts. G&F Systems delivers consistent size, texture and appearance to food products.
G&F Systems
516-868-4923
www.gfsystems.com

Flexible design

The Auto-Bake Refrigerated/Freezing system is flexible in design and installation. The system employs specially selected third-party refrigeration technology. Auto-Bake can supply customized Serpentine refrigeration/freezing system framework to accommodate the refrigeration equipment of a preferred supplier or provide a completely integrated solution.
Auto-Bake
630-257-2900
www.auto-bake.com

Superior freezing and chilling

Bakers demand freezing, chilling, cooling and proofing equipment engineered for performance, flexibility, high volumes and safety. The innovative Northfield SuperTRAK^® structure-supported spiral freezer from FMC FoodTech delivers on those needs, providing flexible configurations, different airflow options and a variety of belt types to optimize production and hygiene. Featuring a center drum drive system and patented F.A.S.T. sequential defrost, the SuperTRAK spiral helps processors achieve superior quality at a low total cost.
FMC FoodTech
419-626-0304www.fmctechnologies.com