BAKESCAN?AND OVENGUARD? KEEPING YOU IN THE DOUGH

In the days following December 14, 1758, Count Morozzo of Turin, Italy, sat down to his afternoon antipasto and immediately noticed the absence of Grissini Torinesi to twirl though his acciughe al verde. He was informed the Giacomelli Bakery, his favorite, had spontaneously exploded.

A man of science, the Count investigated the cause of this disaster, and the conclusions drawn resulted in the first ever recorded combustible flour dust explosion. Following shortly after, he then formulated the combustion reaction model we still use today.

It is well known within the culinary world that cooking is an art, but baking is a science. The science of combustible dust mitigation, or the prevention of dust explosions, is 235 years old. And now, nearly two-and-a-half centuries later, the science of baking has not stopped evolving at Firefly AB, the world’s fastest and most reliable infrared ignition threat detection system.

Firefly has adapted their industrial spark and fire detection system specifically for the baking industry, by introducing BakeScan? and OvenGuard? to its latest ‘Eximio’ line, a revolutionary technology designed to keep commercial ovens in continuous production, and safe from a combustible event.??

Let’s face facts. If you are a high-volume baker, using high-output conveyor transport bands, it is inevitable that you will burn product. More seldom, but presenting a huge risk, you will experience and oven fire. This event could lead to a partial or full destruction of the most important piece of capital on your floor, the oven.

The truth is, “if you ain’t bakin’, you ain’t makin.”

Whereas most spark and flame detection systems utilize UV Silicon photodiode cells requiring light to ‘see’ glowing ignition threats approaching 700C or above.?Eximio is insensitive to light, and is equipped with IR Lead sulphide cells. This feature allows continuous operation without interruption caused by false alarms. Eximio detectors are constructed entirely of all FDA approved materials.

This innovative technology will detect dangerous unseen black ignition particles as low 250?C within 10-50 milliseconds by not one, but two IR readers. The Quick Suppression System? (QSS) feature triggers a water mist or spray extinguishing solution in 5 seconds or less without deluging your equipment and product.

The Firefly Eximio controller platform features a patented IntuVision? GUI touchscreen and preinstalled with a four protection zone capacity, along with the ability to upload schematics of your application in high-color graphics.?

So if your cookies signal they are about to explode, or have already caught fire, Firefly will detect this potential hazard quickly, and extinguish the burned ones without having to e-stop the belt or deluge the entire batch from a sprinkler system. Don’t toss all your cookies, just toss those ‘bad boys’ and keep your line moving.?

Firefly Eximio is the only detector endorsed by preeminent process plant insurer, FM Global, due to its sophisticated TrueDetect IR? infrared method of detection. This unique detection system earned 10 Letters of Accreditation, 6 Certificates of Compliance, and 2 Approval Guides for meeting or exceeding standards provided in the FM Global Industrial Oven and Dryer Property Loss Prevention Guide (published July 2014).

Firefly has thoughtfully applied its industrial protection savvy toward consumable food product applications in order to guard against threats that are controllable or uncontrollable. In brevity, here are some of the Firefly Eximio’s key detection and prevention features.

???????? 2.2.2 Oven / Dryer Fire Protection: Provide an automatic sprinkler protection in the oven if the material being processed is combustible, or where dripping occurs.

???????? 2.2.3.1 General System Design: Design sprinklers to discharge at 75.7 liters / minute, ensuring a?minimum discharge pressure of 7 psi (0.5 bar) is maintained from all sprinklers. Firefly? Try 3 liters per second, or 360 liters per minute at 7-9 bar.

?????2.3.7.2 if it is possible that the safe operating temperature limit of the oven can be exceeded, or if oven processes combustible material, provide an excess temperature limit control requiring a manual reset, that is independent of automatic or manual temperature control. Provide and audible alarm and interlock of the fuel supply or source of heat.

(Firefly can be programmed through IntuVision? or your PLC via IntuVision?, to reduce the heat if the product ingredient mixture is known to have a composition that will catch fire or explode at a pre-determined temperature.)

???????? 2.2.4 Spray Dryers Handling Dust: Actuate deluge systems where used by fixed-temperature heat-??responsive devices having temperature setting from 55-70 Deg. C above the maximum operating of the equipment.

(Unless you are using a fire-brick wood oven to bake an entire Sicilian-style Chicago deep dish, Firefly says “no sweat” from 250-700 Deg. C.)

????????????? 2.4.1.3 Clean Ovens and Ducts at Regular Intervals if they are subject to buildups of flammable deposits of condensed oil vapor, or accumulations of combustible dust, or other material. Do not allow combustible deposits to accumulate more than 3mm in thickness between cleanings.

???????? 2.4.1.6 Pay particular attention to cleanliness at heaters with steam coils, housings and ductwork?since these are the hottest spots where charring and eventual ignition are most likely.

????????? 2.4.3.1.2 Measure the ventilation rate before making any process changes that would affect the?rate of ventilation required. These include changing the character of the work by composition or?weight, increasing batch loads, baking times, temperatures and conveyor speeds.

????????? 2.4.3.2 Symptoms of Inadequate Ventilation: A cold exhaust duct or stack while the oven is operating typically indicates reversal of flow in the exhaust and suggests inadequate ventilation.

?A past record of fires or puffs from the oven during operation may also indicate inadequate safety?ventilation and dangerously high vapor concentration increasing probability of explosion.

??? 3.1.7 Coffee, Cocoa and Peanut Roasters: Overheating in the roaster and ignition or chaff or dust?in the exhaust system are the two most prevalent causes of fires in these roasters. The roasting?operation depends on the operators because the food products are heated close to their ignition points and left unattended will likely result in overheating.

Firefly designed both the BakeScan? and OvenGuard? solutions with consideration for FM Global’s 2.4 series recommendations (above) in mind. Along with an optional Firefly MGD, or multiple gas detector, makes for a complete system to fortify your bakery’s profit wheelhouse, the oven.

Whether your business bakes pizza shells, bread loaves, buns, rolls, muffins, bagels, biscuits, cookies, or crispened snack foods, or a combination of all or some of them, BakeScan? will detect overheated, glowing and burning product on the band transporting product out of the oven.

OvenGuard? complements BakeScan? by detecting and suppressing combustible incidents inside the oven, at the outlet of the oven, and extinguishes embers and flames in the extraction ducts. Stopping fire at the inlet of the extraction ducts is critical, as they act as superhighways that will rapidly carry the firestorm throughout other areas of the plant, such as the warehouse, where finished product is stored. It also reduces the chance of igniting a secondary dust explosion if good housekeeping standards are not maintained.?

Moreover, the oven itself acts like a giant bellows both by mechanical design, as well as the physics of cold displacing warm air. Both the inlet and the outlet of the oven are oxygen-rich, which will fuel a fire more intensely, especially if there are other fuel sources present. Grease and oil build up, dust, crumbs and dirt- all contribute to a recipe for disaster.

Both BakeScan? and OvenGuard? deliver an ultra-fast acting, quick suppression or extinguishing solution consisting of a full cone mist or spray of water depending on the system design. Both systems are custom configured and flexible enough to adjust to your production requirements, as noted in FM Global 2.4.3.1.2 if you plan on using the same oven for varying product and ingredient mixture.

According to the Dust Safety Science Academy’s 2020 Annual Combustible Dust Incident Report, Food Products materials have been responsible for the fastest rising cause of combustible dust incidents. In fact, Food Materials have consistently been the leading category of all combustible materials under study, even more than wood product materials. Between 2017 and 2020, fires caused by food material saw a dramatic 17% increase.?

Fires are becoming a common occurrence at commercial bakeries. While large catastrophic fires are seldom, there is a much higher occurrence of smaller incidents that can actually be more costly.

Sample a cross section of this evenly divided pie that tabulates the most common origins of bakery fires from June 2018 to January 2021.

Interesting to note was the location of the outbreak within the?bakery, and frequency of the specific type of bakery when matched to the baking process.

Snack food and breakfast flake cereal producers were equally as vulnerable to fire as bread, bun, muffin and cake bakers. Nearly 50% of these documented fires were at potato chips plants where the incidents varied among belts, ducts, ovens and unspecified processes and one-third of the incidents originated mostly in dryers and ducts at cereal plants.

Other random causes have been attributed to coffee roaster boilers and burning solid dough, but in nearly 70% of all documented cases combustible dust in one form or another, generated from milled grain to sugar to flour or other mixes are directly responsible for touching off the deflagration event.

Understandably, for one reason or another- insurance purposes, competitive concealment, or ongoing investigation, these producers often mask where the blaze broke out identifying ‘an unspecified piece of equipment’ (one of these caused one-third of the town to be evacuated when flames reached an ammonia tank), to the ‘processing area’, ‘production area’, ‘piece of cooking equipment’ and my favorite the ‘cake-making machine’, are all euphemisms for what is more commonly known as ‘an oven.’?

Whether it’s product riding a belt conveyor, a loaf or cookie baking inside the oven, or the oil and the grease that become transport fuel inside the oven’s extraction duct, if not protected no elfin magic can save Dolly Madison from having?a bad hair day.

These little cookies, dinner rolls, and bagels with the big hole in the middle look sweet and harmless enough, arranged in ranks like toy soldiers riding along on the belt in perfect uniformity; they will be turned into golden brown delights when they pop out on the other side. You anticipate how great they will smell on the other side, and how good they will taste with a pat of butter melting inside them.

Do not be fooled. Variables such as transport speed, ventilation, and fuel sources caked inside the oven with accumulated dust, crumbs and grease can pose highly potential risks. Combined with a sudden belt stoppage, that ‘yummy little dinner roll’ now has the explosive potential of becoming a ‘yummy little hand-grenade.’

The conveying process moves ingredients from the silo to the mixers, sifters and grinders. If additional sweeteners, starches or binders are added to the mix changing the shape of the ingredient, reducing the overall size of the granule or flaking it, the Minimum Ignition Temperature (MIT) and the Minimum Ignition Energy (MIE) can demonstrate an increase in its combustible properties, especially when highly concentrated in one single baked item.

MIT x MIE are then multiplied by a deflagration index number is called KST. (MIT x MIE x KST) KST assigns a substance such as granulated sugar a rating by calculating how much pressure needs to be exerted upon it, over time, to reach its maximum pressure (P-MAX) of how fast it becomes combustible. Granulated sugar is not the most ignitable ingredient on its own, but put it through the processes described above, it will no longer index as it did in its original form.

The product types, by ingredient, content and mix, are more susceptible to fires than others. Dry powders, oils, fats, butter, shortening, sugars and sugar additives all possess variables of combustibility.

How long a specific product type stays inside the oven while on the belt, and at a specific temperature, can also creates a high-potential risk. Low risk baking temperature levels are typically less than 250 Deg. C, and include items such as pre-bake items, which range between 190-220 Deg. C. Mid-level risk temperatures fall between 250 Deg. C and 260 Deg. C. Most of the fully backed product types fall within this range between 245 Deg. C and 260 Deg. C. Lastly, high risk items are in excess of 260 Deg. C.

Until recently, there was a long-standing myth among bakery equipment OEMs and plant maintenance personnel, that other than good housekeeping, dust control, and removing as many ignition sources as possible from the baking environment, there was nothing more you could do to protect your ovens.

Fires and explosions can break out in any part of the process plant, but most commonly during product loading and unloading, product transfer and storage. The most catastrophic fires, however, are the ones that occur the least; these are the conditions where the most critical piece of machinery blows up. When the grinder, hammermill or commercial oven are at the epicenter, the result can be an extensive monetary loss for the plant, as there is probably not another one like it just lying around. The ensuing loss of product order fulfillment due to being taken offline can be devastating.

The IntuVision? controller is the nerve center behind BakeScan? and OvenGuard?.? IntuVision? provides constant reporting and analysis in real time of the number of incidents, when, and under what flow conditions to best run each of your baked products for maximum continuous output that triggers a solution in case of a detection.?

Best yet, its solid-state build comes standard with 4 protection zones, and the ability to accommodate 16 zones with one controller. It also can be operated remotely, or by phone app. So, a plant can protect its capital investment across a process array of ovens, grinders, mixers, conveyors, exhaust ducts, and dust collectors from a single controller. It also can connect and route commands to your PLC for extended safety responsiveness and operational effectiveness.

If the oven is the profit center and driving force behind daily production, why not then equip it with this innovative controller to be the command center of your prevention system?

Consider these overall industry advancements found in IntuVision?: (1) Electronic solid-state components have dramatically lowered costs over the years, enhancing quality, reliability and durability, as well as provided readily accessible, affordable and quick to obtain spare parts; (2) thanks to the controller’s user-friendly graphic interface, it operates more ergonomically; (3) because it is user-friendly, the controller is simple to train on and operate with ease; (4) due the multizone capacity, the controller makes total system monitoring much more feasible and efficient. When wired into mechanical safeguards like isolation valves, abort gates and suppression bottles, the oven will build redundancy into your safety program???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Cost, no doubt, is the biggest deterrent when deciding to trick out your existing belt oven, or considering purchasing a new one, a used one, or even leasing if this is an option. Only a collaborative effort from plant C-Level executive team, the engineering and maintenance staff, and the production personnel can make the best decision that fits the business plan, and key product mix.

The three most common oven types on the bakery floors today are (1) convection; (2) direct gas; and (3) hybrids. Each comes with its own set of strengths and weaknesses:

1.??????Convection: Highly efficient, yes, but with an increased risk of fire due to the inability to control humidity in the baked item.

2.??????Direct Gas: The industry stalwart and workhorse. As they age, maintenance costs escalate due to long service life, operational and control failures.

3.??????Hybrids: Both direct gas and convention. Risk of fire increases with “first generation” operational control failures.

If the bakery buys ‘used’ or leases, the upfront capital is less, but the monthly payments are higher, and there will be more production stops to perform maintenance on a used oven.

If the oven is critical to corporate mission, core competency and brand position, then top leadership will invest in the ‘latest and greatest’ for best efficiency and volume output at a higher upfront cost. If they choose a less durable brand, they may face lower output per oven; those hidden costs and inefficiencies will affect quality and service delivery.

Not investing in a technologically advanced, efficient and reliable oven will cause ongoing anxiety due to hidden operational costs, quality and delivery risks. These types of questions will cause an executive team to find their heads spinning:?

Should we buy an XYZ used oven to cut upfront costs, or should we lease? What if we take a chance on a reduced cost model, will something suddenly go wrong when we need the oven to provide stability during critical seasonal periods? Will foregoing the best options on XYZ really make a difference? Perhaps the cheaper oven will be obsolete in less than three years. If so, can I purchase an upgrade package? This may not be the best-case scenario with an inferior purchase to begin with. If we use XYZ options to bake snack bars, will it be fast enough to bake cookies if corporate adjusts its product mix?

Bakeries, due to their high-volume singular unit output, need to know exactly where their gross margins are to maximize cash flow. They also need make price adjustments to stay above the cost of doing business. Each baked item in its product mix needs to be managed to control fixed costs and ingredient expenses to achieve desired operating results.

Are your suppliers’ prices in line? Are you not generating enough volume output? Are you not running your ovens efficiently? Have there been any incidents to take your oven offline? How long was your oven out of commission? Are you running the right product on the oven, or do you need to upgrade, discontinue, or replace the product with something else?

So, what is the best formula to calculate how much raw bunnage yield over the intended service life of a belt oven will need to be generated, without burning up the oven before then? Look at your net profit not from an overall company performance standpoint, but for each product over a given fiscal period.

How much revenue was made from just one of those French loaves down to how much was made from each oyster cracker? Subtract those revenues from the cost of each item sold per the ingredient mix and divide that by the gross revenue to learn the gross margin.

However, merely targeting a healthy gross margin will not guarantee profitability, especially with high risk factors such as equipment breakdowns due to poor preventative maintenance and housekeeping.

One tool to use would be a discounted cash flow analysis, (DCF) which figures in inflationary adjustment over the planned service life of the oven less depreciation. It will compare your net present value, whether your yeast will continue to rise, or your cake will be upside down; that is cash positive or negative on the oven. You can then evaluate the investment opportunity and the payback time.

Say you have invested $1.75 million on a city block long belt oven several years ago projected to last 10 years. If it is now prone to fires, putting you out of production for extended periods of time that you did not anticipate. You were not planning on allocating that much of your annual maintenance budget to the oven, but after thorough analysis you cannot afford not to, as your brand must maintain shelf space.

If the oven was projected to give you a fixed 25% return over its service life, but now after 5 years it only realized 15%, you are now looking at over 30% by the tenth year. Given the BakeScan? and/or OvenGuard? systems present only an additional “off the cuff” cost of 3-5% of that initial investment, consider it cheap insurance that will increase your odds of Firefly getting you there.

When the DCF analysis is plotted against a sensitivity analysis (SA), it will calculate the probability of reaching your return goals based on industry standards, the frequency of projected events and incidents that take you offline, downtime, labor costs and lost sales.

If the products you are baking require slower belt speeds at higher temperatures, and your gross margin and product yield are falling short, your oven could be a candidate for BakeScan? or OvenGuard?.

Ultimately, when choosing the oven that best suits your go-to-market strategy, your bottom line is favorably impacted by continuous volume output coupled with the flexibility to switch out products on the fly. When matched with a regularly scheduled maintenance regimen, and a fire safety prevention system anchored by the Firefly Eximio BakeScan? and OvenGuard? System, you’ll stay in production.?

Call me for a site visit, or consultation and we will break bread. I will work with you to design and customize a competitive prevention system unique to your production process that will save you a ton of dough and make you so much more.

Ron Reynolds, MBA, CV Technology, Inc.?, 2021.?