VMI in the mix: VERYMIX
VMI’s VERYMIX continuous mixer also monitors and controls several parameters, including the energy throughout the process. “From premixing to the end of the mixing process, the viscosity and the formation of the gluten network are monitored thanks to the energy tracking,“ explains Mélanie Gay, Marketing & Digital Development at VMI. Everything can be managed from the HMI, from recipe formulation, dosing, programming, to monitoring and traceability.
Pre-hydration can also be controlled; VMI’s horizontal pre-mixer (HPM) integrates ingredients in the bowl in two zones, one for powders and one for liquids in the form of spray droplets, and a third zone specific to mixing. “Flour, sugar and other baking ingredients are combined with water and immediately form a homogeneous dough and the beginning of a gluten network,” VMI’s specialist explains. These steps are designed to make the mixture more homogeneous and the process more effective, allowing for a wider range of hydration, from 40% to 110%. The HPM works directly above the VERYMIX, and continuously transfers hydrated raw materials into the mixer underneath, where the dough is mixed to the required consistency.
To maximize efficiency, the VERYMIX offers a wide range of mixing parameters that can be used according to the production criteria, and quality required: the mixing rotor is adapted to the dough, the bowl shape is optimized for continuous operations and times and mixing intensities are adjustable. This level of process control allows for flexibility.
Very accurate dosing
The VERYMIX continuous mixer automates powder and liquid ingredient dosing as well as scrap dough management. Flour, salt, sugar, powdered milk, gluten, improvers and other raw materials are weighed by three stainless steel load cells. These load cells can be fed automatically by intermediate hoppers, or by manual loading hoppers (big-bags). Water, egg, milk, liquid yeast, flavorings, liquid sugar and brine are also precisely dosed. The system features dosing pumps and electromagnetic or mass flow meters to weigh liquids.
The quantity of scrap to integrate can also be dosed: “Scrap dough should not be neglected: for bread, it can amount up to 25% of the weight of the flour and for some puff pastry, it can even surpass 50%,” Gay highlights. The VERYMIX continuous mixers make it possible to automate the flow management towards resting phases or for a transfer to the line, while also reintegrating the dough scraps.
Read the full article in Baking+Biscuit International, issue 2.
Lead photo credit: VMI
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