PRODUCTION
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Reading Bakery Systems Exact HDX Continuous Mixer
All set for continuous mixing and kneading Continuous dough production is designed with volume and efficiency in mind. Requirements stemming from the product characteristics, the manufacturing needs, the facility and equipment line-up will influence how continuous mixing and kneading should be set up.
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A continuous kneading and mixing process ensures all types of ingredients are mixed and kneaded in the optimum sequence to produce the desired product with consistent characteristics while saving time, resources and minimizing waste.
For the production of buns and rolls, such a system is the Exact HDX Continuous Mixer, developed by Reading Bakery Systems, which can process from 2,000 pounds per hour up to 15,000 pounds of dough per hour. It offers a number of features that make it well suited for these products: + The mixer has a two-stage design. In the first stage, the dough is mixed up to the clean-up stage (the point in the process where the moisture is completely distributed, but the development of the dough is only beginning). At this point, the dough will feel tacky but will not stick to the hand. The second stage is designed for the high-speed development of the dough. “Because the two units have independent drives, the two stages can be mixed at different mixing intensities. This makes the HDX Mixer very versatile,” highlights Jim Warren, vice president of Exact Mixing at Reading Bakery Systems. + Both stages are designed to optimize the ability to cool the dough. Highly-developed doughs such as those typically used for buns and rolls can sometimes require temperatures lower than 70°F for mixing. To control the temperature, all internal surfaces are suitable for glycol solution cooling: “The glycol (or chilled water) circulates in the mixer jacket
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and within the mixing shafts. The actual temperature is adjusted by either adjusting the temperature of the glycol or by changing the rate of circulation of the glycol,” Warren illustrates. Moreover, the characteristics of the dough have been taken into consideration in the design of the HDX Mixer. Dough with hydration ratios of 60% and higher generally requires a great deal of shear to be developed to the required level. The key to success is to apply energy in a way such that the gluten strands are formed without shearing or shortening the strands, which is what the HDX is designed to do, he explains.
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