Keeping Cool in the Kitchen
 
Award winning Adande proves its worth

"Staff costs have been reduced because we no longer need an additional commis chef to run around fetching things and we are definitely saving on electricity costs"

The Harbour Inn at Southwold has achieved energy savings, faster customer service and reduced staff costs after installing a VariCool unit, designed and manufactured by Adande Refrigeration of Lowestoft.
 
The unit features four independently controlled drawers, each capable of operating at any temperature between
-20ºC to +15ºC, with the temperature of each draw precisely controllable in increments of 1ºC.
 
This offers caterers total flexibility between chilled, frozen and ambient storage, so that, for example, a drawer used as a fridge in the morning can become a freezer in the afternoon and back to a fridge in the evening.
 
The VariCool received the Foodservice Consultants Society International, Europe (FCSI) award for distinguished development design, awarded annually for exceptional innovation by a European manufacturer.
 
The award criteria relate specifically to the catering industry's requirements in the areas of safety, operation, ecology and efficiency - and the team at the Harbour Inn agree that the VariCool ticks all these boxes.
 
The Harbour, owned and managed by Colin and Katie Fraser, serves food seven days a week throughout the year. The kitchen team, led by head chef Mal Blyth, produces five or six specials every day using fresh local produce, meaning that storage space is always at a premium.
 
"Our kitchen is relatively small but we pride ourselves on being well equipped to ensure that our staff are happy, the quality of our food is always good and we can provide excellent customer service, even at peak times", said Mr Fraser.
 
Work smarter
 
"On busy days it is not unusual for us to serve more than 350 meals in a two-and-a-half hour period and so we are always looking for ways to work smarter. Planning menus and organising the kitchen team and space effectively is what makes us so successful."
 
The VariCool unit was recommended to Mr Fraser by David Forster at Four Star Refrigeration in Lowestoft who knew of the system developed by Adande, and could see its obvious benefits for the Harbour Inn.
 
"Prior to investing in the VariCool we had a stainless steel table in its place and relied purely on a three door freezer unit and our cold room for cold storage," said Mal Blyth. "As a result we spent a great deal of time running around to get what we needed - wasting resource and time.
 
At the beginning of service we now load up the VariCool with the items we are most likely to need - raw meat, pre-prepared meals, sandwich fillings and dairy products - so that they are close to hand and stored at the perfect temperature.
 
VariCool enables us to split everything up and so have no worries about cross contamination and food hygiene, and at the end of the day the drawer liners can be fully removed for cleaning. The VariCool's stainless steel surface also means that we haven't had to compromise on preparation space".
 
The VariCool's data-logging facility is another real plus point for the Harbour Inn. "As well as daily monitoring, once a fortnight we simply download the data straight into our computer system. This data is immediately accessible as part of our due diligence reporting systems," added Mr Blyth.
 
'Paid for itself'
 
Although the investment was a major decision for a small business - particularly when the product was new to the market - Mr Fraser is confident the unit has already paid for itself.
 
"Staff costs have been reduced because we no longer need an additional commis chef to run around fetching things and we are definitely saving on electricity costs" he said.
 
"The unit has enabled us to speed up service times and keep our customers happy by delivering more meals in busy periods. In addition the peace of mind, which the VariCool's health and safety features provide, has its own immeasurable value in our industry" he added.
 
Adande VariCool was the brainchild of Ian Wood and George Young, specialist HVAC consultants since 1984.
 
They identified fundamental design flaws in the traditional refrigeration and freezer units favoured by the catering industry. So they designed a new system which provided a solution to the problem of cold air escaping from a fridge or freezer every time the device is opened and used.
 
Following positive feedback from extensive field trials, and the added endorsement of the FCSI award, the VariCool was officially launched in spring 2004.

 
Find out how Adande can improve the performance of your kitchen.  Phone us now on 01502 533796.  Alternatively click here to order more information on video or DVD.
  
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