Westfield London puts sustainability in the scullery
Winterhalter warewashers provide a ‘first class, innovative solution’ for expanding retail centre
The food court at the Westfield Centre in Shepherds Bush is high end and an incredibly busy operation. Warewashing is centralised and has to cope with up to 9,000 plates and bowls a day, plus associated cups, glasses, cutlery and so on. The variety of outlets and cuisines, from British to Lebanese, means the machines have to cope with different types of soiling as well as a complicated mix of tableware.
The existing warewashing system wasn’t coping and, with plans to expand throughput in the food court meaning it would have to handle 20% plus more volume, Westfield decided to upgrade the scullery. Graham Bean, Design Director at Bunzl Lockhart, managed the project. “The brief focused on using innovative technology to deliver sustainability, better efficiency and cost savings,” he says. “A key criteria was improving the working environment for staff – plus, we had to work within the existing, compact warewash area footprint. For the warewashers, Winterhalter was the obvious choice.”
There are three Winterhalter machines at Westfield. Two are flight conveyor types, whereby crockery and trays to be washed are loaded straight onto the conveyor. The third is a rack conveyor, which uses racks to transport the glassware through the washer. All are Winterhalter MT (multi-tank) modular systems, which allow the specifier to adapt the design by using different modules – prewash, wash and so forth. For example, one of the flight conveyors has a double drying zone, specifically to get trays dry as quickly as possible. The machines are packed into a very tight area but, thanks to clever design work, staff have room to work efficiently.
One flight machine is dedicated to crockery, the other cleans trays and pre-washes cutlery. The rack machine, which is fitted with a reverse osmosis (RO) unit, is used to clean glasses and finish off cutlery.
However, all the Winterhalter machines have been pre-programmed to be multifunctional, with both glasswash and dishwash functions. The programmes can be changed by flicking a switch on the control panel. They adapt the wash parameters, including chemical dosing, to ensure best results, whatever is being washed. The multifunctionality of the Winterhalter systems means that if one machine has an issue, or if there is unusually high use of glasses or dishes, then the scullery can manage.
Facilities Manager Shaun Turnbull says, “We have seen our operational efficiently flourish since the introduction of the new scullery. Our food court retailers have given positive feedback, not only on the speed of service but also the exceptional cleaning results achieved by the system.”
With Westfield’s old system, cutlery and glasses needed to be hand polished after washing – a time consuming task that led to breakages, too. The new glasswash system features Winterhalter’s market-leading RO water treatment unit, which produces such sparkling results that there’s no need to polish. “The Winterhalter RO makes a huge contribution – it reduces labour costs and breakages massively,” says Graham.
Sustainability is a key part of the Westfield scullery – for example, it features an innovative vacuum waste management system that reduces food waste by 80%, the residue of which is sold for composting. The Winterhalter machines feature a variety of technologies to minimise energy, water and chemical consumption. They include heat recovery pumps, sophisticated filter systems that minimise water use, and detergent and rinse aid saving devices.
A key ‘eco’ feature on the Winterhalters at Westfield is their Fresh Air Drying Zone. This takes a whole new approach to the issue of drying plates and other ware as they come out of the dishwasher - and results in a significant reduction in the system's connected load, which cuts total operating costs by at least 33%. As well as reducing energy consumption, the Fresh Air Drying Zone improves drying results. Plus, it improves the working environment for staff, as it enhances the air quality in the wash area, and it makes handling safer and more comfortable, as clean dishes are cool and dry enough to be sorted straight from the washer.
Alongside the warewasher systems, Winterhalter is also supplying Westfield with warewash chemicals and is servicing the equipment. The company has guaranteed that by using this ‘total warewashing solution’ the scullery will achieve the best possible results.
Shaun says, “From start to finish, preparation and project management was second to none and delivery of this first class, innovative solution was a great success.”
Winterhalter provides a total solution for warewashing, from pre-sales advice to after-sales service, training and maintenance. Alongside its market-leading dish and glasswashers, the company’s range includes utensil washers, advanced water treatment machines, cleaning chemicals and detergents. For further details, call Winterhalter on 01908 359000, see www.winterhalter.co.uk, or www.winterhalter-scout.biz or email info@winterhalter.co.uk.
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Westfield Centre – Sep-16
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Editor’s notes
Westfield Phase Two Extension: for more information visit westfieldlondon-plans.co.uk
Bunzl Lockhart: for more information visit www.lockhartcatering.co.uk
Interserve provides the FM services at Westfield. The scullery is included in the contract. For information on Interserve visit www.interserve.com
Winterhalter MT Warewasher Systems
MT stands for Multi Tank. Each Winterhalter MT system is made up of multiple tanks, each with its own application: prewash, wash, rinse and dry. An MT can be specified with different tanks – for example, if soiling is heavy then an extra wash tank might be incorporated. In addition, the tanks come in different sizes – small medium and large.
The Fresh Air Drying Zone – how it works
Standard drying zones in high volume dishwasher systems use air from within the machine to dry dishes - but although the air is warm, it also tends to be saturated, so drying is compromised. The MT's new Fresh Air Drying Zone draws in air from outside the machine, warming it gently and then using it to dry the washed items. It then vents the air straight into the site's ventilation system.
Energy consumption is reduced because the fresh air only needs gentle warming, so the system's total connected load is cut by as much as 2 or 4kW, depending on the model chosen. Drying is also improved, because the fresh air is less humid than the air within the machine. Typically the air in the new drying zone is 10% less humid than with traditional systems.
Handling is easier, because the dishes are dryer - so there's no need for extra manual drying - and they are cooler, so they are easier (and safer) to deal with straight away.
Air quality in the wash area is significantly improved because the new zone reduces the amount of heat and vapour radiating from the machine's out feed.
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