Unique specialties, often artisan-style products, are one of the most successful categories of the moment, and for good reason. However, successfully and efficiently manufacturing them requires a special approach. Artezen developed a technology concept for dividing doughs that are challenging to process, which ensures excellent end products.
Panettone is notoriously difficult to make, as challenging as it is popular. It owes its delicate texture to the softness and elasticity of the dough, with lots of gluten and fat contents. Just like panettone, some of the most beloved bakery specialties require tradition, innovation and craftsmanship to create. They can be made with widely diverse doughs – either highly hydrated or very stiff, sometimes gluten-free, or with added benefits such as extra protein. Other emerging favorites include pastries, pinsa romana and many smaller products, often prepared with long processing times for more taste and freshness. All of these qualities contribute to popular, premium products that enjoy a growing fondness with consumers. Recipes like these require creating doughs that are challenging to master and need gentle handling in all stages of processing. Dividing and rounding the dough are among the ‘make it or break it’ steps, where flexible handling is key.
Most dough dividers excel at handling relatively stiff and compact dough, to match the processing demands of more prevalent products. With the increasing diversity of bread and pastry doughs, a dedicated approach is required. Italian specialist Artezen developed a dividing technology perfected for challenging doughs. Its creators explain: “While dividers typically employ a fixed mechanical working cycle, allowing only the variation of speed and volume, Artezen uses a hydraulic system to control the movements of multiple pistons, adapting the dividing cycle according to the dough parameters.”
Dino Gasparotto, General Manager, Artezen
The technology can be used flexibly for diverse dough structures (and inclusions) – from liquid to stiff, by adjusting the main parameters. Delicate doughs can be divided without damaging their structure, and similarly, gluten-free doughs. To do this, a two-step mechanism was designed: “Calybra dividers use vacuum to pull in the dough from the feeder hopper into a cylinder of about double the volume required for the final product. Then, the dough is gently moved to the second and final weight chamber,” Artezen explains. This two-stage dividing cycle generates an accurate final volume with minimum stress to the product. To achieve this, the process does not employ gravity to have the dough take a fall at any time.
In addition, dividing is set up vertically, so the equipment can easily and accurately extract the required dough volume from the feeding hopper and move it into the final weight chamber. The main piston used here is round, a departure from the square ones that are traditionally included for portioning, which ensures the dough is gently handled.
The operators can adjust the diving process directly from the machine’s control panel; if the bakery switches from hard and soft dough in its daily production schedule, the machine can be adapted throughout the day as needed. Models featuring the Memory pack are recipe-driven, so dividing cycles can be stored with the recipe for each product. The machine can also be fitted with a wide range of options/devices, according to the characteristics of the main type of dough to be handled by the bakery, including scrapers, flour dusters, custom coatings for the feeder hopper and best-suitable belt materials.
Dividing live dough, automatically
Taking into account that dough does not stop proofing while it is prepared for baking, the Artezen divider can be programmed to adjust for fast-proofing dough while it is being divided, especially useful when large amounts of dough are loaded into the hopper (e.g. 200 – 300 kg). The weight checker ensures the products are consistent in size, even when the volume expands, as accurate dividing uses volume and density measurements, which vary for each type of dough. For example, “When the baker sees that, after 8 minutes of dividing, the dough weight is reduced by 5 grams, they can program the divider to add 5 grams every 8 minutes,” Artezen illustrates. Recipe-specific adjustments can be stored as well, accounting for the density of the dough and its contents (including water, yeast, fat and fruit or other ingredients). If the Artezen Lybra weight checker is coupled with the Calybra divider, this system can permanently check the weight of the divided pieces and adjust the divider to take into account the density evolution, the specialist explains. The Lybra weight checker also corrects the process according to the different densities of the dough from one day to the next. Operators do not need to manually check the dough pieces at the start, the middle or the end of the production cycle.
Adjustments are automated to the level where the machine can run completely independently – particularly useful for industrial bakeries, to ensure process consistency, as well as for semi-industrial or even smaller operations where automation also compensates for the lack of (experienced) staff.
The user interface was designed to be easy to use and does not require more than 15 minutes of training to learn how to operate. Instead of descriptive menus, icons with an intuitive design are used, which also eliminates the need for translation. The more automated operations save manual labor and optimize the use of raw materials.
The Calybra divider:
+ Calybra Express: designed for 1,000 – 2,000 pieces of dough per hour
+ Calybra, for two-shift operations (semi-industrial bakeries): 1,000 – 2,500 pieces per hour
+ Calybra HD, for three-shift operations: 1,000 – 2,800 pieces of dough per hour
Oil-free dividing
The Calybra dividing system portions the pieces while avoiding any stress on the dough. “This is particularly important because stress causes the bonds to the molecular structure of the dough to break, and it increases dough humidity, which makes it necessary to use generous amounts of oil and flour while handling. It also shrinks the volume of the baked bread, which is often addressed by using additional, costly ingredients,” Artezen explains.
To eliminate these problems, the need for oil was removed: “The oil-free diving principle was developed by our founder, Mr. Gasparotto, more than 25 years ago. The dough is processed without coming into contact with divider oil, which is not only healthier but also much cleaner, even more so when a flour duster is required. Oil and dough (and then flour) do not mix well and make maintenance more difficult. No oil in use means no oil dropping on the floor or on the outfeed belt. This makes it easier to keep both the machine and the surrounding workspace clean,” comments Aram Rijkaart, Executive Business Partner,
Artezen.
Artezen designed its dividers to operate without oil, using only stainless steel and special techno-plastic polymers, which are both food-safe and very sturdy. The need for flouring to help release the dough from the divider or for downstream processing is also greatly reduced, and, in many instances, even completely eliminated. There are no components that can rust or require lubrication. “Dividing oil, typically, is very abrasive and is used to ensure that old dough and ingredients like sugars are scraped off the metal surface of the dividing chamber. This leads to premature wear and often requires the refurbishment of the divider after a few years of usage. This is why Artezen developed an oil-free principle,” the Italian company explains. With this build, the equipment’s maintenance needs (and respective costs) are also greatly reduced, in addition to saving on the regular purchase of divider oil.
New-generation technology
The newest generation of Calybra dividers was introduced in 2024, designed to be easily incorporated into existing production lines. The hydraulic system driving the divider components was redesigned and relocated, making the divider shorter and easier to fit. The loading/unloading heights can also be adjusted by easily placing lowering kits, as needed. In addition, the outfeed belt can reach higher to allow a higher unloading point without affecting the loading height.
“The hydraulic system is now completely separated from the area where dough or flour can enter. This guarantees its long-term proper functioning and makes cleaning of the enclosure much quicker,” Artezen highlights the changes in the new design, which bring maintenance and hygiene improvements. The hydraulic system can be easily accessed through a separate entrance.
The equipment can be set up with custom dividing cycles, to match different types of dough, respectively the gluten content in proportion to other characteristics, such as water, fat, or other ingredients. Parameters that can be set include speed, capacity, the speed of the outfeed belts, counting the divided pieces, as well as the timing and synchronization of the various movements of the pistons. Artezen recommends starting each new product with the value initially suggested by the software. If variations in the divided pieces are measured and more accuracy is required, higher values can be selected until the desired parameters are reached.
The Calybra divider is available in three versions adapted to different production requirements:
+ Calybra Express, for single shift operations, at moderate speeds of 1,000 – 2,000 dough pieces per hour, depending on the type of dough and the required weight of the final product. It can be offered with an incorporated spiral rounder for white dough and pizza, for the production of up to 1,500 breads/pizzas per hour
+ Calybra for two-shift operations, with typical speeds of 1,000 – 2,500 pieces per hour
+ Calybra HD, for three-shift operations, with speeds of 1,000 – 2,800 pieces of dough per hour
The two bigger models can be equipped with a Memory pack that sets the desired weights and can store recipes for different dividing cycles. “You can program speed, single or double piston operation, dividing pressure, and automated weight adjustments,” explain the specialists. The Connect pack comes with a WiFi router used to connect the machine to the Artezen Connect application, an Industry 4.0 feature that allows the operator to program the divider and weight checker remotely. It also provides daily production statistics and feedback on the status of cleaning and maintenance needs. Through the application, Artezen technicians can also provide support when needed.
The three ranges share the same operating principles, but have unique designs to fit the typical daily use of the equipment; the faster or the longer they work in between two cleaning cycles, the more stress on the components (this is why Artezen implemented a visual aid, an emoticon alert that shows the cleaning status of the machine at any time). “Each model has its own hydraulic system and the mechanical components are reinforced,” the specialists explain.
Calybra and Calybra HD can work with larger dough feeder hoppers, of up to 300 kg (and, for certain dough types, even up to 500 kg). On the Calybra Express, the maximum size is usually 210 kg. Due to the size of the chosen components, the floor space of the dividers increases slightly with the higher production capacity of the model, from 60×165 cm for Calybra Express up to 85×210 cm for Calybra HD. These ranges can be further personalized according to requirements related to dough, placement, connected equipment, operator control interface, among other factors.
“For dough with relatively little or no gluten content, or very hydrated dough with a higher gluten content, we provide flat belts with scrapers. For white dough (with or without a flour duster), a waffle design without a scraper is more suitable. Some versions come with a single piston, while others allow the use of a single piston or double piston, by turning a handle – taking into account the required weight ranges it is working with. Accordingly, a single outfeed belt can be required or a splitter belt with different speeds left or right,” the company shares possible customizations.
Hygiene
The advantage of an oil-free system is that it is easy to remove dough scraps and flour from the machine, since none of it sticks to its internal components. A broom or a vacuum cleaner is enough for cleaning. In addition, all the covers of the system are easily removable and the weight chamber can be accessed via a door (or a removable cover, for the Calybra HD).
“The vacuum system of the Calybra model can empty the hopper, main cylinder and weight chamber completely. We recommend using a 3 kg batch of dry, compact white dough to run the cleaning cycle, which is available from the software, with sequence-by-sequence steps to follow. This removes any residue from the internal parts of the divider. When this step is completed, the dividing chamber can be opened and some pharmaceutical, white oil can be sprayed in for hygiene, while the machine is not in use,” according to the specialists. Optionally, the hopper can be tilted sideways to allow easy access to the bottom of the system. This is particularly useful when dividing sticky dough.
Dino Gasparotto (General Manager), the technical mind behind the developments and one of the founders of Artezen, observes a fundamental change in the role of equipment in bakeries: “While, in the past, the products were adapted to the machine, it is the other way around now: bakeries need equipment that will match their product, so that they can offer the consumer the desired products.” Artezen designs its dividing technology to respect and protect the qualities of the dough while it is precisely portioned.
