A large bakery is producing high quality pies. In order to convey their brand’s premium message they want to ensure a consistent look and quality. Part of this is achievable by applying egg glaze onto the pies before they enter the oven. This way the crust gets a nice glossy finish that is more pleasing to the customer.
To accomplish this the bakers were using a spinning disc system that was constantly spraying. This caused several quality issues.
The first problem was caused by the overapplication of the glaze. This was causing excessive liquid build-up on the conveyor and slippery conditions near it - causing unsafe working conditions. Furthermore this wasteful application caused a rising cost of the expensive egg glaze that was being used.
The second problem was caused because of the lack of control over the amount of glaze that was being used on the pies. This caused variations in the end product quality, something the producers were desperately trying to avoid.
The goal was simple: find a solution that would give more control over the glazing process and prevent waste. The production engineer realized that they were already using a highly accurate spraying system for a different application. Inspection of this system caused them to call in the local expert from Spraying Systems Co.
AutoJet® Egg Glazing System
After reviewing the different food-grade precision spray options we decided on an AutoJet® Egg Glazing System. The systems consists of:
- • AutoJet® F1850+ Spray Controller
- • Jacketed open tank: The jacket skin acts as insulation to keep the glaze cooled to the appropriate temperature.
- • 4 PulsaJet® nozzles on a variable spray header: the header has forward and sidewards movement of the nozzles to allow staggered positioning.
- • Sensors to trigger the system as the pies pass
The AutoJet® Egg Glazing System gives full control over the application and can easily be set to spray a very specific amount of egg glaze per pie. This prevents wastage and guarantees the same quality result every time.
Result
After installing the new system the customer noticed an immediate improvement in the egg glazing process. Because they now have full control over the exact amount of glaze that’s being sprayed, the product quality is more consistent. Furthermore, spillage and slippery work conditions around the spray area are no longer an issue. The cleaner environment has had a big impact on alleviating the cleaning process of the belt and the surrounding area - freeing up resources for other tasks. The end result of the installation of the new AutoJet® Egg Glazing System is a higher quality end product and a cleaner, safer work environment.