As filled pans leave the two bun makeup lines, they change directions 90' to enter the conveyor feeding pans one at a time onto carriers that will move them through the proofer. The conveyorized proofer carries buns through a 55-minute proof at 41'C (106'F) and 80% relative humidity.
Proofed buns pass through a Burford mandrel-style seeding/ splitting station. With top treatment applied, they continue for-ward, entering the carriers of the Sasib/ Stewart conveyorized oven. They bake for eight minutes at 270'C to 2851C (5181F to 545'F). "We decided to split the product stream in two, so conveyors are running at effecfively half speed," Mr. Samson said. "It's like two smaller lines, each at 700 buns per minute."
Engineers mounted the packaging area's Allen-Bradley computer terminal on a long arm that reaches over all four lines. Operators can easily pull it into position when shifting from the bulk wrappers to the retail packing lines.
Bulk-packed buns move directly into waiting delivery baskets, while retail bagged buns enter a Pulver pattern loader that groups them for insertion into baskets. Each packaging line ends in a Pulver bottom-up basket stacker. When stacks reach their completed height, the stacker releases them onto the Cannon Conveying Systems in-floor conveyor. They pass into the distribution area, merging with stacks of bread and other baked foods.
To make room for bun packaging operations, Multi-Marques built anew washing room, moved its existing Pulver bread basket unstacker and Convay basket washer and added a second washer, a Newsmith immersion-style system. Although the Newsmith has six blowers, it operates at noise levels under 90 decibels, a big improvement. The washer's soaking action removes dirt and grime.
The bakery now operates with three types of baskets: one for bread and two for buns.
It added a second Pulver basket unstacker, capable of handling all three types of delivery trays. An Allen-Bradley Panel View terminal readout at the unstacker alerts washing room operators to the style and number of trays needed by the system.
"When we first developed our Critical Path plan for buns, we knew we did not want to start up in April and have to go immediately to three shifts," Mr. Pelletier said.
"This was our first experience with extrusion divider on rolls, even though our bread line is an extrusion system," Mr. Samson said. "And when systems are so new in technology, it takes time to set up for them properly."
Mr. Pelletier added, "The productivity gains here put heavier demands on our staff's technical knowledge."
Although the new line needs just half the number of operators as older lines, it requires enhanced skill levels. This gave the company an opportunity to re-align staff assignments. The company worked with a consulting firm to evaluate and train staff, as well as write manuals. Trainers were present during installation of the equipment. Managers identified key employees to train others. These key operators also traveled with Multi-Marques engineers to field-test equipment at factory sites.
While the bread line operates with only seven employees per shift, the bun line requires 12 because of its more complex packaging systems. Employment now totals 107 people: 33 for bread, 36 for buns, eight full-time in sanitation, 12 in maintenance and 18 supervisors and engineers.
Multi-Marques started up its bun plant with five pan styles. During the first two months of testing, one new item per week went on-line.
The careful startup schedule also helped re-assure one of Multi-Marques most important constituencies: its own salesmen.
"We wanted to convince our sales staff that they were getting greater quality than before," Mr. Pelletier said.
Two IJ WHITE COOLING SPIRALS installed in parallel handle bun cooling rather than a conventional overhead racetrack system. The bakery opted for 3 0-in.-wide spiral belts, wider than those available for overhead systems. Spirals also cut product movement since there are no transfers between tiers. The product does not slide I on the grids, generating no crumbs. And
with centralized belt cleaning, the IJ WHITE SYSTEMS are automatically sanitized and have reduced yearly maintenance costs.
"We want the products to stay in place, to exit as they go in," Mr. Samson said. "And in emergency mode, should one spiral go down, we can speed up the other to carry 70% to 90% of the production of a second spiral." This can be controlled from the IJ White pre-wired Electrical Control Center which incorporates their Belt Tension Control (BTC) System.
