The role of a mixer in a bakery seems a simple one, but a lot depends on that one piece of machinery. Yet what constitutes a good mixer today may not hold true for tomorrow. As products change, so too must the mixer, as bakeries are discovering.

“Needs have changed as dough has changed,” explains Matt Zielsdorf, vice president of sales and marketing for The Peerless Group, Sidney, Ohio. “Many of the products on the shelves today require more energy to mix, so the mixer design of yesterday may not be substantial enough.”

The growing popularity of whole wheat and grains has put a lot of pressure — literally — on mixers. Mixers that used to deal only with a simple dough now have to power through product with increased density and ingredients.

“Many of the whole grain products are more difficult to mix and possibly stress the mixer more than a standard white dough once did,” Zielsdorf notes. “Our earlier mixers were strong, but we understand that bakers will not always follow the operating procedures exactly as written. Because of this, we redesigned our mixers to hold up regardless of what the bakers can throw at them.”

And as mixers have become more versatile, bakers have discovered applications for them in new areas. Shawna Goldfarb, vice president of marketing and mixer product manager for Shelton, Conn.-based Kemper Bakery Systems, a subsidiary of WP Bakery Group, has noticed mixing technology becoming more industry-wide, instead of remaining application specific.

“The knowledge of the spiral mixer being a better way to mix is spreading into more industries than just the artisan world,” she says. “I have heard it in both the pizza and in-store industries.”

Regardless of the application, however, bakers still have some basic needs when it comes to shopping for a new mixer. Zielsdorf sees a lot of demand for sanitary design — enough that Peerless will unveil a new sanitary-design mixer at IBIE in September. Goldfarb notes that bakers are focusing on both the quality of the end product and the quality of their supplier's customer service.

“As a supplier, [we see that] the customers are looking for service and parts,” she says. “When they buy a machine, they want to know the supplier is going to be there to support them throughout the life of the mixer.”

HEAVY-DUTY MIXING

The new THM-OT heavy-duty horizontal mixer from Topos Mondial is a 100-percent stainless steel model with a high-efficiency, two-speed main drive motor. Its sanitary design allows for fast and easy cleaning, giving full access to all interior and exterior surfaces. A lack of gearbox and chains makes it low maintenance and operator friendly. The mixer is available in nominal sizes 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16.

Topos Mondial Corp.
610 970 2270
www.toposmondial.com

A MIXER BUILT TO LAST

Oshikiri mixers are designed to be tough, from their heavy-duty bases and frames, to their simple, ruggedly designed drive systems. Available in sizes from 50 lb. to 3,000 lb., along with bowl tilts from 95° to 140°, each mixer is custom built to meet specific dough requirements.

Oshikiri Corp.
215 637 6005
www.oshikiri.com

MEET LARGE-SCALE PRODUCTION NEEDS

The Peerless Group offers the HS24 horizontal roller bar mixer for the large-scale production of quality bread and buns. This system features Peerless' fully automated mixer solution, incorporating its proprietary CMCS™ (custom mix cycle system) as well as the Peerless DQC™ (dough quality controller) for enhanced process control with a minimum amount of labor. The mixer is outfitted with two-way tilt to automatically accept sponge from the heavy-duty Peerless trough hoist system, which is rear-mounted in this configuration. Operation of the trough hoist is integrated into the total system control, but it also can be operated as a separate unit as conditions dictate. Dough temperature is controlled through the combination of Peerless' industry-leading bowl-jacket cooling design in concert with full-surface bowl end cooling and patented ColdBar™ system. As with all Peerless mixers, the machine is BISSC-compliant.

The Peerless Group
800 999 3327
www.thepeerlessgroup.us

TACKLE DIFFICULT APPLICATIONS

Gemini offers the Unimixer, the ultimate planetary mixer for batter, muffin and cookie doughs with a range of sizes from 200 L to 600 L. A programmable logic controller (PLC) allows for programmable multistep mixing cycles and formula management. The Unimixer will increase production capacity with faster mixing times, higher quality and consistent batters. Unique mixing system solutions are available for the most difficult applications.

Gemini Bakery Equipment Co.
215 673 3520
www.geminibe.com