(632b) Applying Engineering to Baking -- a Fish Tale

In 1995, Pepperidge Farm Inc, was producing their famous Goldfish Cracker on seven production lines and close to 95% capacity on a 24/6.6 basis. Over 6 flavors were being packaged into 3-5 different packaging venues, and the capacity limiting portion of the operation was the Baking Ovens.

A new and insightful President joined the company that year, and realized the tremendous untapped marketing potential of this well known brand name. Within just a few weeks, the goal of ‘2 by 2' - Doubling the Goldfish business by year 2000, was the new corporate challenge.

In 1995, new Goldfish production lines required capital expenditures of between $15 – 20 million, and a total lead time of 9 – 11 months. The company only had factory floor space for one additional line, and outsourcing was not an option. Further, the equipment companies and “expert bakers/consultants confirmed previous company tests, certifying that the current ovens were at absolute maximum capacity.

The next two years of testing and development resulted in an increase of over 110% - 130% throughput rate through the ovens and the company realized its goal of doubling the business by end of year 1998.

This discussion will focus in on the application of engineering principles as applied to the “art” of baking. The baking industry has been very much dominated by two influences over the past 100 years. Baked Product marketing companies have typically left the ‘science' to the bakers and food scientists. Equipment companies have employed Mechanical and Structural engineers to design and build equipment that captures the Baker's bench experiences. In-plant or corporate based Process Engineering is a relatively recent innovation of the last 30 years. Application of Chemical Engineering principles to the understanding of Baking unit operations and “dough” behavior is an important newer contribution within the industry, which is still only enjoyed at some of the largest companies.

Let's explore how a Chemical Engineering approach improved the “Fishing”!