What's New in Energy Saving Equipment

It is common in the foodservice community to hear people argue that equipment manufacturers have been slow to change and that more innovation — especially in terms of energy and water efficiency — is needed. But Don Fisher, president of Fisher-Nickel, Inc., points to numerous examples of equipment on the market today that belie that claim.

Advances in Steamers

One of Fisher's top examples is the development, over the past decade, of boilerless steamers in which water usage has plummeted from 40 gallons an hour to less than four gallons. You can view one good example of how such advances have been accomplished in the What's Hot/What's Cool exhibit at NAFEM, where Accutemp will be displaying its Gas Fired Evolution Steamer, which has earned the Gas Foodservice Equipment Network's (GFEN) 2010 Blue Flame Product of the Year Award.

AccuTemp Gas Fired Evolution Steamer

According to John Pennington, CSC, vice president territory sales and corporate chef for the Fort Wayne, IN-based manufacturer, the company's first Energy Star listed steamer dates back almost a decade. The Evolution model represents its most advanced product so far and can be either “connected or not connected,” he adds.

Generally, those purchasing “not connected” steamers are aiming to save water, since 25 to 40 gallons of water are typically used every hour for a boiler-based steamer, while boilerless steamers typically use 14 to 24 gallons. However, the Evolution Steamer uses less than one gallon per hour either way.

Pennington adds that the connectionless installation now also requires less intervention on the part of the operator than did past models.

“We took our connectionless design and figured out how to add water to it without having to manually fill and drain the unit periodically,” Pennington says. Instead, a control valve unit can be installed on the back of the steamer that recycles condensed water back into the chamber. Also, “since we don't require water filtration, there are no water quality statement exclusions [that can] void the warranty.”

Vulcan Boilerless Batch Steamer

Pennington estimates annual savings of energy and water combined for the Evolution Steamer vs. an older, boiler-based unit could be $1,500 to $3,500; when compared to an older boilerless unit, he says the Evolution could save $500 to $1,600 annually.

‘But how fast can it cook?’ As a chef himself, Pennington is quick to point out that a chef in a kitchen typically “doesn't care about energy efficiency; he's worried about how fast he can get the food out.” The models in question are designed to facilitate batch cooking in volume situations, he says.

“The boilerless unit will be two minutes slower than one with a boiler — it depends on the density of the food and how fast the given product can absorb the steam.

“Usually in an a la carte situation, you need the speed of a boiler-based steamer to get product out in four minutes versus eight minutes.” (Visit www.accutemp.net for more info and an energy savings comparison chart of the Evolution Gas Steamer vs. conventional boiler-based gas steamers.)

In the steam cooking world, Mike Burke, CFSP, SNS, product manager for the steam cooking division of Troy, OH-based Vulcan, agrees with Pennington in recognizing that cooks are first and foremost concerned with productivity vs. energy savings. With that in mind, Vulcan's Energy Star rated Boilerless Batch Steamer (vs. an a la carte cooker) has been reintroduced this year. Now made in-house, the unit's energy saving cooking efficiency has been increased by more than 5%; on a one-compartment steamer (3-5 pans) there's typically a $450 annual savings on utility bills (i.e., electric, water and sewer combined) with a 90% water savings vs. a traditional steamer.

Addressing the productivity issue, Burke details the kitchen operation reality: “You put product in (for batch cooking), shut the door, let it cook through the cycle — and not open the door during the cycle. With a la carte cooking, you may have to open the door to put more product in, shut the door, and remove product at various times. Such actions change the temperature inside the oven and affect the cooking time of all items within.

The way the (energy efficiency) standards are written, tests measure a unit in a specified usage situation that may not be realistic given the usage and performance demands in an actual operating environment, Burke argues.

Where a la carte is the norm, Burke suggests that some locations, such as a 90-bed nursing home, for example, should actually be able to use a boilerless batch steamer more effectively if they change production processes so as not to keep opening the unit during production. In situations where that isn't possible, he says model selection needs to look beyond efficiency ratings only and consider the likely usage patterns that will actually occur.

Coming to a Boil

Sustainability is considered in the development of every new product designed by Duke Manufacturing, according to marketing manager Richard Arthur. The St. Louis, MO-based company's Gas Flexible Batch Broiler, co-developed with Burger King, recently completed its rollout and is currently in test with a large international contract management company.

“The broiler is one of our bigger successes with a green focus,” Arthur says. “The typical broiler is a major natural gas hog. We designed a batch broiler that's a slightly smaller unit than the one it was to replace, but it meets the needs of about 95% of the chain's stores worldwide — and helped reduce gas consumption by 25% to 30%.”

In addition, since the unit boasts an enclosed cooking chamber, that is said to reduce its impact on the ambient temperature of a restaurant, leading to reduced air conditioning costs. Kitchen workers are said to be cooler and more comfortable as well.

Waterbaths Without Water

Duke's latest innovation is its Waterless Rethermalizer, also slated to debut at NAFEM's What's Hot/What's Cool pavilion. It features a waterbath that eliminates the need for water!

“Bagged frozen product typically retherms (or slakes out) in a 50 gallon waterbath that's filled up each day and held at boiling most of the time,” Arthur explains. “By saving 50 gallons per unit per location per day, there's a significant savings in water usage. Plus, the unit cycles off when not in use and only supplies heat when it's demanded.”

Fryers Recovery

As greater energy efficiency has become increasingly important within the industry and as more manufacturers aim to attain Energy Star standards, Fisher also points to fryers from Ultrafryer Systems as “the benchmark fryers — those with the highest efficiency performance.”

In a typical application, Hobart calculates the resulting savings, based on 200 racks/cycles per day in a restaurant setting, should be on the order of $792 annually by running the machine on a cold water line. Also, because there's no vent hood, there is no need to replenish air lost with conditioned makeup air, reducing the HVAC load for a $776 annual savings.

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Ultrafryer Systems fryer

Of course, Rick Jones, director of sales and marketing for the San Antonio, TX-based manufacturer, agrees, but voices some Energy Star-related frustration. “We were green before green was cool,” he contends. “But Energy Star created a standard based on cooking energy efficiency for only one of three classes of fryers — the 14-inch size (that's the cooking area of the fryers) or 45 to 50 lbs. (that's how much shortening it holds).”

That size may make up the largest portion of the industry's installed fryer base, but Jones notes that 18-inch (60 to 100 lbs. of shortening) and 20-inch super fryers (with a shortening capacity in excess of 120 lbs.) are still waiting for recognition by the Energy Star program.

He also says he'd like to see “a Silver Star, Gold Star, Bronze Star for differentiation of those at the top from those at the bottom. Different levels within the Energy Star rating would drive energy savings [innovation] because as it stands now, there's usually no incentive to go further.”

Noting that all Ultrafryer Systems' fryers would pass the Energy Star standard, Jones singles out the Par 4 Gas Fryer as the most efficient fryer the company has developed to date. Created in the past two years, it's a fairly expensive unit (and therefore not heavily marketed) that's currently offered in the 18-inch size.

“With a more efficient fryer you can cook at a lower temperature (about 350°F) and therefore with a lower energy cost because it has faster recovery (that is, after cold product is immersed, how long it takes for the oil to get back to 350°F). He says that also means less oil is absorbed by the product and increases the amount of product that can be cooked per hour, increasing productivity.

Advances in Conveyor Ovens

Looking for a faster-cooking Pizza Conveyor Oven? Operators in that situation can turn to Middleby Marshall (Elgin, IL) and then say, “WOW!” (Actually, the WOW! Oven was first released in 2005 and has since gone through various iterations, according to company spokesperson Darcy Bretz).

“Depending on product, it takes three to five minutes to cook a pie, letting locations that would usually need two ovens to purchase only one. The current model saves about 30% in energy use vs. our traditional conveyor ovens.”

Middleby also claims to have developed the most energy efficient Speed Cooking Oven available — the SOTA model introduced in early 2010. “Energy consumption is half that of a traditional fast cook oven.,” Bretz says.

Heat Recovery in the Dishroom

You've done it all and now there are pots, pans, dishes, etc., to be washed. For the latest in Energy Star-rated Exhaust Air Energy Recovery, Hobart Corporation (Troy, OH) launched its Advansys Ventless Door Machine in January 2010.

Hobart Advansys Ventless Door Machine

“The recovery cycle captures heat in the steam from the machine and uses it to heat incoming 55° to 65°F cold-water headed for the final rinse cycle,” explains product line manager Carrie Hoff. “By heating cold inlet water up to 140°F, less additional heating energy is needed to reach the required 180°F rinse-water temperature.”

In a typical application, Hobart calculates the resulting savings, based on 200 racks/cycles per day in a restaurant setting, should be on the order of $792 annually by running the machine on a cold water line. Also, because there's no vent hood, there is no need to replenish air lost with conditioned makeup air, reducing the HVAC load for a $776 annual savings.

Together, that's a total savings of $1,568 by running on a cold line vs. a hot line. (And it doesn't count an additional estimated $3,500 savings from not having to purchase and install a basic vent hood in new construction). Altogether, this amounts to a $5,068 savings (including the hood cost) for the first year with $1,568 in savings per year thereafter. “This high temp machine is perfect in a leased space where the operation doesn't own the building and you want to avoid the expense of installing a hood,” Hoff adds.

Stero, also under the ITW company umbrella, offers at least five warewashers with Energy Star ratings and notes that an Energy Star commercial dishwasher can save up to 90MBTU of energy and 52,000 gallons of water per year. But a word of caution is offered by longtime industry/Stero warewasher expert Rod Collins, principal, Rod Collins Associates, Cotati, CA.

On large conveyor or flight-type machines, it is very important to size tanks correctly, he says. Improper sizing can lead to situations in which soiled dishware must be re-run through the machine, negating any savings that might have been calculated.

As with everything in the marketplace, buyers need to be diligent in investigating efficiency claims and equipment applicability carefully in light of their own requirements. Also, efficiency ratings and testing standards are continually evolving, so make sure you check for the latest data before assuming that any particular model will qualify for a rebate or achieve the level of efficiency you are looking for.

Increasing range top performance by “Thinking Out of the ‘Pot’”

Sometimes a fairly small yet unique innovation can make a very big difference—think of fishing line to make the Weed Wacker possible—and we marvel that no one thought of it before.

A line of Turbo Pots at work.

Well aware that chefs like to cook on gas ranges but that this is not necessarily an energy efficient method, West Coast inventor Lee Huang determined to come up with a “simple” solution to improve oven top efficiency. Applying his knowledge of physics and engineering, about three-and-a-half years ago he designed a prototype of what is now on the market as the Turbo Pot.

Custom-designed fins he constructed for the bottom of the pot became his “secret ingredient.”

“A major reason why cooking on a gas top is not so efficient is because heat has to transfer from the gas burner to release heat to the frame, then transfer to the cookware, then transfer to the food. This form of convection heat transfer is very slow—it’s the weakest link,” he explains.

Huang, now the owner of Eneron in Palo Alto, CA, aimed to improve the process. He knew that in computers, high power lasers, and even in motor cycles, so-called “heat sinks” are integrated into the designs where heat buildup is a problem and used to facilitate heat transfer away from the critical component area.

They are usually designed with fins and strategically placed mass. In a computer, for example, a heat sink absorbs the heat generated by microprocessors and then carries it away via the larger surface area of the fins.

“In cooking, it is the other way around,” he explains. “We wanted to use a heat sink to absorb heat from the flame and more efficiently transfer it to the metal frame of the pot. By building the heat sink into the bottom of the pot, we increased the efficiency of cooking on a gas stove.”

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By 2008, Huang’s Turbo Pot was in test with FSTC (it’s listed under “Range Top” on www.fishnick.com) and the Carrabba’s Restaurant Grill chain (part of the Outback Restaurant Group) has been testing the pots throughout its 240 locations for more than a year; other major chain locations are also reportedly on board.

“Operators save energy in two ways,” Huang explains. “They can operate the Turbo Pot in speed mode or savings mode. For speed mode, you use the burner on high power and cut the cooking time 30% to 50%. In savings mode, you cook at a normal pace but dim down the burner by 30% to 50%.

For example, Carrabba’s—which is using 81⁄2 quart-size pots for cooking pasta—asked its range manufacturer to change the burner orifice on its stoves so the BTU rating is down from 30,000 BTUs to 15,000 BTUs, and that’s saving energy.”

Huang is also pleased to note that the pot is “green” in the carbon footprint reduction sense: “The energy used to make the fins [the actual construction] can be offset by eight to ten hours of commercial use, so it’s a very green thing. Carrabba’s also estimates it is saving millions of pounds of CO2 [emissions] annually throughout the chain.”

OSI/Carrabba’s v.p. of R&D and Kitchen Operations Joel Barker has had time to take the measure of the pot: “I’ve been in R&D for Carrabba’s Italian Grill for over 10 years and with the company for over 19. In this time I’ve seen many products that claim to be the best thing since sliced bread. Well, the Turbo Pot is the best thing since sliced bread!”