All washed up?
Alistair Telfer pulled his head out of the display model utensil washer on the Hobart Manufacturing stand. He had just experienced what it was like to be in the machine, thanks to the clear plastic insert on the side. More importantly he was witnessing the demineralisation process in action.
Telfer estimated it would take staff about six hours to polish 1,000 glasses - this time could be saved by using a demineralisation system in his washing process.
On his fantasy tour as the general manager of a five-star hotel, Telfer was concerned about the efficiency and cost of getting his tableware clean.
He added a drying unit and a separate glasswasher to his wish list, as well as some form of demineralisation process.
Hobart was the first of three stands Telfer visited. He chose Winterhalter Gastronom and Meiko to complete his tour of recognised warewashing names. All stressed they would offer a bespoke system and prices quoted are rough estimates.
Hobart focused on the finance of running the operation, budgeting either with the capital cost, or running costs. Here it was efficiency that mattered and the sales team mentioned the latest development, Megatronic, an electronic management monitoring system.
Their recommendation for a heavy-duty SB Flight machine came in at about £40,000. On top of this a rack machine to handle glasses added £10,000 to the cost and the demineralisation unit £2,000 for a total of £52,000.
At Winterhalter Telfer was asked an entirely different set of questions. Here the focus was on how much was being processed and what the desired turn-round time would be. Additionally, Winterhalter offered a complete service package, which appealed to Telfer.
Winterhalter recommended a rack-advancing system, although Telfer felt the separate glasswasher suggested would be too small to handle the needs of a large function. Total costs were £38,000 for the machine, drying unit, glass washer, tabling and dumping area.
Last to bid was Meiko. The focus was on the operating personnel. There was great attention to detail, such as an automatic shut-off lever-activated when there are no racks going through to save energy, and a stop lever on the last trolley to prevent trays from falling off the end, should the operator leave for any reason.
These details impressed Telfer and he was pleased the heat regeneration system was specifically recommended to save energy.
Meiko suggested a flight conveyer at a cost of about £25,000 plus £5,000 for the dumping area, and £8,000 for the separate rack glasswasher, a total cost of about £38,000-£43,000.
The final verdict? "From a personal point of view I would go with Hobart. They are a name I know and I feel they have more experience and their machines are more advanced," said Telfer.
