Bakery Equipment Guide

As a commercial baker or perhaps someone who bakes a large amount of goods for the community, it's important to get the right bakery equipment to suit your needs.  This includes planning for increased business if you are a commercial bakery that is getting started out.  Costs can be saved by either buying cheaper and/ or smaller or by purchasing used bakery equipment.  Buying smaller is fine if the smaller size can fulfill most of your your baking volume needs for the foreseeable future.  However, there is always a chance you will find quality used bakery equipment for sale for much cheaper than used.  Since well made equipment is built to last, this would be the preferred route for a budget that doesn't allow for the purchase of a new model of your choosing.  You have to be careful when buying something just because it's cheap things are almost bound to go wrong with items built exclusively to be cheap.

Bakery equipment leasing also exists and is a viable option for those who can't afford to buy the equipment outright. Often this is the only way to pay for all the business expenses for a fledling business without taking out a loan. Leasing commercial bakery equipment also offers benefits above and beyond these, however, as this makes it possible to upgrade equipment over time. However, remember again that quality equipment built to last, while it costs more, also tends to be much more dependable and it may be possible to use such equipment for a very long time without having to replace it. For this reason, it's also a good idea to research equipment to see how easy parts are to replace- both in terms of how easily they are switched out as well as availability. Well established brands may be more reliable in terms of repair parts, and bakery equipment suppliers that are reputable businesses should be able to help you out in this matter.
Another option is to attend bakery equipment auctions to find what you need. You should make sure to research the equipment that will be on auction beforehand if at all possible. Otherwise, having a good idea of the equipment on the market will leave you better prepared to get a good deal on equipment being auctioned. You can usually find out what's being auctioned beforehand through auction announcements, many of which are posted online.

Not only ovens, which form the core of most bakeries, but also mixers and cutters as well as processors like slicers and sealers may be purchases you need to make. Different sized businesses need different things, with bigger operations needing larger and more types of equipment. Here, too, costs can be saved in a smaller bakery by omitting certain non-essential machines. Though they do save work, you can always buy them later once the business is up and running and you have the capital needed for the investment. There's an adage among craftsmen that it's better to have a few good tools than many crappy ones, and the same may apply to your bakery.
Ovens come in many types, usually available in gas or electric models. The rack oven is larger and one of the most common, and has one or two racks, each of which can hold up to 30 pans for baking. This is done in one compartment, in contrast to a deck oven that can have up to four separate baking chambers. These often have stone hearth surfaces and are great for baking bread and pizzas.
If you want to utilize all the rack space in an oven for baking the same creations, try a convection oven. Heat gets circulated evenly in this type of oven, so goods get cooked at the same rate. For an oven that does this plus uses steam in the baking process, try a combi oven.
Then there's the revolving tray oven, which looks and moves like a ferris wheel and is great for baking bagels.

Other labor saving devices that are commonly found in a bakery are bread dough mixers, which can mix and knead dough, producing bread dough faster and in larger quantities than possible by hand. Biscuit dough mixers, cake mixers, and pastry mixers are used as needed. The needs of a cafe are often more complex than a bakery depending on the variety of in-house products one wishes to offer. Machines can rapidly add up if you want to offer many different types of baked goods.
Some other considerations when getting equipment is the quantities of ingredients you will be using. Being able to use whole large bags of flour can save you time, for example, by not having to measure out the specific quantities needed for making a batch of product. The savings in labor can really add up if you are able to take stock of all the steps in the labor process that can be made easier or eliminated. This can give a very different idea of the machines you need for your bakery business than just choosing based on minimum needs.