Baking & Snack - June 2017 - 102

DEPOSITORS

Gathering information such
as product characteristics
and line capacity sets the
stage for a quick,
uneventful start up.
Reiser

materials versus thin, easy-flowing materials," observed
Neil Anderson, director of business development, Axis
Automation. "Then consider aerated creams and mousse
fillings, and you have a whole different ball game."
Unifiller provides - and often custom designs -
depositors and nozzles to handle a diverse range of batter viscosities and specific gravity at high speeds accurately, according to Mr. Macpherson.
Standard depositing nozzles include positive cut-off
to avoid tailing. Diving nozzles deposit batter inside
paper liners while spreading systems apply a swath of
butter on croissant dough. Suck-back nozzles are often
installed when spreading heads are used to apply batter
and eliminate excess dripping.
Overall, Mr. McIsaac said, pure liquid batters remain the easiest to portion. "Gravity is all you need," he
pointed out. "To run the stiffer batters, you need to adjust
the machine to draw them into the portioning mechanism. On our Vemag, it's a simple change of settings for
adjustments."
Handtmann employs its vane cell technology to handle batters with various viscosities without changing
specific gravities after the depositing. Its depositors use
an adjustable vacuum level to properly feed the batters
and place them into sheet pans or baking trays. "For
low-viscosity batter, Handtmann depositors can gradually increase the vacuum level to make the batter flow
consistently for proper depositing," Mr. Zelaya said.
Before the batter hits the pans, mixing and aeration
provide the initial controls to ensure its consistency and

102 Baking & Snack June 2017 / www.bakingandsnack.com

eventual accuracy, explained Bob Peck, vice-president
of engineering, E.T. Oakes. "With a manual system,
you need to check densities and the weight of the batter
more often than with continuous mixers with automatic
density control," he said. "That's because we know the incoming density of the product via mass flowmeter prior
to aeration. With the Oakes mixer controller, the aeration is achieved through feedback from the mass flow
meter and the mass gas meter. We know the mass flow
coming in. We have a set point value of the final density, and all of this information is fed to our PLC, which
outputs how much air is to be injected into the product."
Certain products have specific characteristics that
require special treatment. "If there is a need to deposit
very light, delicate and aerated products such as angel
food cake, the machine configuration should have large
diameter ports at the intake and the depositing outlet
side of the machine," Mr. Macpherson advised.
Because they're made with all egg whites, angel food
cakes and meringues with a lower specific gravity require
greater amounts of air and higher back pressure in the
mixing head to make the bubbles in the batter and create a homogenous foam. Mr. Peck stressed that the mass
gas and flow meters must work together in the system to
achieve the desired final specific gravity for these desserts.
Moreover, Mr. Gregg noted that certain types of piston depositors can handle complex batters since they
travel through the depositor with little compression.
"Their large product flow paths allow the depositors to
handle stiffer, more viscous batters with particulates," he
said. The same depositor often can handle both light to
heavy specific-gravity batters."
Still, it sometimes takes different depositors to handle
a delicate sponge cake batter vs. a dense brownie batter
to meet exacting product specifications. "The only sure
way to enjoy consistency in quality and appearance of
end-products is to invest in dedicated depositors for
each," Mr. Anderson said.

Servo-driven precision
When it comes to cake depositing, many bakers demand
that versatile systems adapt to their extensive product
portfolios. Moreover, many foodservice establishments
constantly tweak their menus while retail and in-store
bakery customers often request ongoing seasonal desserts and limited-time offerings to drive impulse sales.
"With our complete line of depositing equipment, we
offer multi-layer as well as multi-flavor product depositors," Mr. Cummings said. "We also offer injection depositing to allow a cake within a cake or filling within a
muffin or cupcake. Tromp Group also offers depositing
equipment for decorating cupcakes with both the icing
and the sprinkles at very high speeds."

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Baking & Snack - June 2017

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