“Packed with inspiration” is the theme for GEA at interpack 2017 where it will present systems for packaging of food, confectionery and baked goods, beverages, medical and technical items, and pharmaceuticals. The world's leading trade fair for the processing and packaging industry opens today until May 10, 2017, and once again more than 170,000 trade visitors from 190 countries are expected to come. GEA Comas and GEA Imaforni will be presenting their range of integrated bakery solutions for cracker, cake, pie, biscuit and cookie manufacturing at the GEA stand in hall 7a (B09/B31).
Reference for optimized quality production
For the first time at a tradeshow, GEA will showcase two reference integrated solutions for the bakery industry: a GEA Comas cupcake production line with a GEA Imaforni multi-zone tunnel oven for optimized quality production; and a flexible biscuit and cookie production line. GEA will demonstrate to industrial bakery customers the benefits of leading technologies and unique application expertise deriving from the combination of GEA Comas and GEA Imaforni solutions into one dedicated Application Center Bakery.
Hard biscuit and cracker line sets benchmark for high capacity production
GEA will be showing a versatile forming line for hard biscuits and crackers, consisting of a sheeter, a lamination unit and a set of gauge rolls. The production line has been designed, using GEA’s extensive experience, to obtain consistently regular products by gently processing the dough sheet. GEA’s expertise in dough mass formulation, and the way it is handled throughout the gauging process, is the key factors to avoid stressing the dough sheet for consistent production quality. That guarantees minimum tolerance on weight variation, accurate shape, aspect and color of the finished product. The line is completed with a dough sheet relaxing web, a rotary cutter, a scrap pick-up machine, a scrap return conveyor and an oven panner. GEA is able to offer lines of up to 2,000 millimeters in width, far beyond the current industry standard, setting the market reference for high capacity production.
New integrated system for soft biscuit and cookie lines
GEA’s experienced staff will show an integrated system comprising a GEA Imaforni rotary molder for soft biscuits combined with a GEA Comas co-extruder machine for cookies. This new solution provides even the most demanding customers with a flexible production line for a huge variety of rotary biscuits, wire-cut cookies, smooth biscuits, two-color center-filled cookies and fig-bars. The GEA biscuit and cookie line offers high performance and excellent accuracy in every biscuit; this results from GEA’s extensive experience with a worldwide installed base and a constant effort to satisfy customers’ needs.
Complete cupcake production line
Seen on show for the first time will be the GEA Comas high-capacity cupcake production line mounted on a GEA Imaforni tunnel oven. This part of a complete cake production plant on the GEA booth will include: a high-speed rotating paper cup dispenser to deposit self-supporting paper cups; a high accuracy volumetric multi-piston depositor with brushless motors and interchangeable head for easy washing and fast product changeover; and a convection tunnel for perfect baking.
Pie Production Line offers most flexible production on the market
GEA Tartomatic is the most compact and flexible pie machine on the market for production of a wide variety of pies and tarts in different shapes and sizes. The key part of the machine is the extruder that guarantees the gentle and efficient handling of dough and the highest available volume accuracy. The high-precision stamping process ensures perfect pie shell, with exactly the right dimensions and thickness, for consistent product quality and weight. Also on show will be an integrated volumetric piston depositor for cream or jam for producing classic tartlets.
A collaboration that drives innovations
GEA provides the services of its food technologist team to all customers of turnkey solutions, to help develop new products and improve existing recipes. In the GEA Bakery Experience Center in Torrebelvicino and Verona, Italy, GEA expert food technologists are working closely together with customers developing and improving industrial bakery solutions.
Improve the life cycle costs of a bakery plant and equipment
With several options of the new service concept “GEA Service – For your continued success” GEA customers are optimally being supported throughout the entire life cycle of their installed bakery systems and components: from project engineering, installation, and commissioning to maintaining and improving the performance of the customer’s bakery plant and equipment. Thanks to integrating the latest automation and control solutions, like remote assistance, the status of customer’s bakery machines can be monitored by GEA automation engineers in real-time by ensuring precise and efficient GEA Service support.
Daniele Toni