Derbyshire-based Stacey’s Bakery has installed a new Polin rack oven at its central production site in Ilkestone to help improve efficiency and product quality.
The £42,500 investment has allowed the firm’s previous oven to ‘retire’ after 40 years of service. Managing director David Stacey, a fourth-generation member of the family business, said that although the old oven was still working, he felt it wouldn’t continue baking at the high standards their customers were demanding for much longer.
“Technology has moved on and our new oven is much more flexible and easier to adjust,” he commented. “It produces a consistent bake and is also much more energy efficient.”
The new double air flow oven supplied by Brook Food & Bakery Equipment was imported from Italy. It uses reflective glass with high density insulation and a double-locking door to maintain the heat, resulting in a 4% energy saving.
Installation came with its own challenges. The old oven had to be demolished, the floor checked, and a new gas flue put in place. While this was happening, the bakery team worked tirelessly around the clock to ensure production wasn’t disrupted.
“Our bakers, Wayne and Dinesh, were amazing,” expressed Stacey. “They worked extra night shifts to ensure a seamless change over without impacting the quality and supply of baked goods that keep our loyal customers coming back.”
Stacey’s operates four shops, one at its main bakery on South Street in Ilkestone and another across town on Bath Street, plus one in Heanor and one just over the Nottinghamshire border in Eastwood. On an average Saturday, the bakery produces a total of around 15,000 brown and white cobs of different sizes and fruit teacakes. On Christmas Eve, this figure can rise to 50,000.
“Our customers have always loved our products and our bestselling cobs are no exception,” said Stacey, who noted that the lines coming out of the new oven had already started garnering compliments. “One customer said that our cobs were the freshest and lightest they’d ever bought,” he added.
“We have been baking bread for nearly 100 years and investing in the new rack oven to produce our cobs has ensured our future bakes continue to be the very best they can be. We are thrilled with the oven and its results – and we are now well-placed for the usual Christmas Eve rush.”
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