Baking & Snack - August 2007 - 63

PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY

touch-screen panels with color displays and an option
for remote maintenance. Other features include fully
integrated electric and electronic components, no external switch cabinets requiring external cable installation,
less space requirements, easier on-site installation and
higher ground clearance for easier cleaning.
Improved efficiency can also come from reducing maintenance requirements and/or lengthening the
intervals between maintenance procedures. Hebenstreit
is constantly investigating and testing new materials and
components for its ovens, Mr. Bainbridge said. "Using
parts that have longer wear and utilizing new technologies such as servo drives will help our machines become
even more efficient."
"Automation is key with all our equipment now.
Our waffle lines can easily be run by one person," said
James Cummings, president of Tromp Bakery Systems.
"We constantly look for ways to decrease labor costs
for our customers."
Efficiency must also carry over beyond wafer production to further processing of the products to include
cremes and fillings. Hebenstreit offers a wafer creme
spreading machine that is more flexible and user friendly
than previous machine designs from the company. The
machine can apply creme filling using the "film" or "contact" method. The wafer sheets are continuously passed
under the spreader head, and the creme is spread on top
with the "film" method. Then the wafers are stacked and
topped with a cover sheet to complete the sandwich.
Depending on the sandwich, the machine can process up
to 120 wafer sheets per minute.
When using special fillings, the spreading rollers can
be adjusted so the filling is continually applied using the
"contact" method. The machine can be used to spread
ᮢ Wafer/waffle technology is also used for pancake production. This oven
was designed to bake McDonald's McGriddles.
TROMP USA/VANDERPOL

66 / BAKING & SNACK / August 2007

creme, chocolate, caramel or jam fillings, as well as creme
fillings containing nuts or granules. The machine also
can accommodate different spreading widths thanks to
its axially adjustable spreading rollers. The rollers, which
are removable for easy cleaning, also feature tempering by either electrical or warm-water heating. The system also offers preprogrammed recipe storage and easy
changeover from one type of filling to another.
Another step in the production process is cutting.
The wafer book cutters slice the wafer books discharged from the cooler into smaller wafer fingers of
the desired size. Franz Haas offers the VAWDM and
VAWDK wafer book cutters. Some features include
fully automatic operation with up to 14 to 20 cuts per
minute, variable product sizes by exchangeable cutting frames featuring cutting wires or blades, double
execution for higher capacities and simultaneous
production of wafer fingers in two different sizes,
combination of evacuator and wafer waste grinder
allowing for the recycling of edge trimming for wafer cream production and special versions of the book
cutters designed for fillings such as caramel.
Franz Haas also offers machines for discharging and
separating the wafers. The wafer finger discharger ASV
automatically feeds the wafer fingers from the cutter to
the packaging at a rate of up to 40 per minute. When
necessary, the company's AZV device separates the wafer
fingers from the book cutter and feeds them in an aligned
arrangement to a chocolate enrober.
INTO THE FUTURE. The wafer/waffle segment may
seem to be a niche market without the possibilities
of other areas of baking, but those on the inside see
countless possibilities for the future. Hebenstreit's Mr.
Bainbridge predicts, "We expect to see the expansion
of the functional foods trend into the wafer industry
in the near future. There are already some products on
the market that incorporate proteins or other ingredients to fortify
the water used in production," he
added. "Combined with a variety of
fillings, customers can make great
products that are better tasting and
lighter for the consumer compared
to traditional nutritional bars."
There's also room for expansion
in the North American market in
the area of hollow wafer production.
These products are extremely popular with consumers in Europe and
are readily produced by bakers in that
region. Taking advantage of this untapped market could be beneficial to
US bakers and wafer/waffle production system manufacturers alike. Ⅲ

Baking & Snack - August 2007

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