Aquinas college & Meiko a Tutorial in Efficiency
14 September 2011
Meiko has been called upon to provide the dishwashing facilities at Aquinas College as part of a £25 million redevelopment of this Roman Catholic 6th Form College in Stockport.
The College appointed award winning Sterling Foodservice Design to design and specify the £350,000 scheme for the main kitchen, servery and deli bar on the ground floor and the coffee shop on the first floor. Chester based C & C Catering Equipment Limited won the tender for the overall kitchen package and was contracted to supply and install the equipment under Main Contractor Vinci Construction. All three companies worked closely to ensure the installation was completed as intended, on time and within budget.Sterling Foodservice Design is operated by husband and wife team Andrew and Elaine Powis; Andrew is a Fellow of the Institute of Hospitality (FIH) and a Professional Member of the Foodservice Consultants Society International (FCSI). Elaine, a Member of the Royal Institute of Public Health and Hygiene (MRIPHH), obtained her extensive knowledge of catering equipment through 35 years of managerial involvement in all sectors of the industry and from working with several major equipment manufacturers.
“The new build offered the College the opportunity to upgrade the kitchen and dining areas with the most appropriate and reliable equipment on the market,” says Elaine. “We always embrace the sustainable route, so this was an eco project from the very start.”
According to Principal Danny Pearson: “From the outset Sterling’s design was ambitious....in all areas it specified high utility facilities and fittings. The kitchens include staff social space, offices, food preparation, cold rooms and walk-in storage, conveyor warewashing, hot food servery, cold buffet servery and a satellite coffee bar.”
The College caters for up to 1923 students, in addition to 250 staff and visitors, so providing reliable, economic warewashing was a major part of the refurbishment. Sterling’s determination to specify the best meant they wanted Meiko for the warewashing facilities and as a result specified a Meiko K-Tronic series basket transport machine with energy saving integral heat pump for the main wash-up area and a Meiko ECO530 front loading machines for the satellite coffee shop and other areas.
Andrew Powis continues: “With Meiko basket transport machines, the ecological and cost saving advantages lie in the 10kW an hour energy saving achieved via the heat pump and in the way that water consumption is minimised during the machine’s working cycle.
The energy saving is achieved by capturing the heat from the waste air generated from the washing, rinsing and drying process and leading this through the condenser of the heat pump unit, where this warm air is used to pre-heat the incoming cold water used during the final rinse process. The pre-heated water (approximately 45ºC) is then transferred to the machine’s rinse boiler where it is boosted to a temperature of 85ºC and used for the final rinsing of the washed product.
An added advantage is that the exhausted air from the heat pump is discharged back into the room at a temperature in the region of 18 ºC, assisting with room cooling and greatly improving the working environment for the wash-up staff.
“there is a belief that with a heat pump incorporated within a dishwashing machine there is no need for direct connection to an exhaust air system and that is technically correct, however for the heat pump to work efficiently there is still a need to ventilate the wash-up area and approximately 22/25 air changes need to be allowed for at building design stage”, he explains.
“The way Meiko utilises the water is also very clever,” says Andrew. Smaller wash tanks mean less water is used and subsequently fewer chemicals are needed with no loss of washing quality. In the pre-wash zone a double filter system deals effectively with even the smallest food residues (e.g. rice), preventing food from entering the detergent bearing main washing zone of the machine. Substantially less food debris in the wash water solution ensures a dramatic reduction in the quantity of regeneration water and chemicals.
“We chose Meiko because past experience has shown they give the best service ever; both the company and the machines are extremely reliable. Their back up service and instant response means that we as specifiers can be confident our clients are never let down.” says Elaine.
The kitchen staff welcomed the innovative technology, “Even the concept of using a tray return carousel which is also suitable for wheelchair users – previously everybody was using tray clearing trolleys in the old building – didn’t faze them and all agreed this made life a lot easier,” says Elaine.
“The roll up grid on the floor channel is also a boon. Gone are the days when staff injured themselves lifting heavy gratings over drains and gullies. We specified the unique stainless steel, custom made integrated floor channels and grids supplied by ADO-Metal UK Limited. The grids are in manageable sections which can be rolled up to be thoroughly sanitised in the dishwasher.”
The Leigh Tec Solutions ceiling in the main kitchen contains integrated ventilation and lighting. “That’s quite something,” says Andrew Powis, “a ventilated ceiling with an open view through the kitchen from the dining area where diners are not faced with a canopy. The College wanted everything streamlined and visible.”
The success of the facilities inspired the principal Danny Pearson to appoint new catering manager Simon Cheadle and under his guidance the catering at Aquinas has itself become inspired, he says. “Students vote with their feet by eating there regularly and in large numbers.” There are plenty of food outlets off-site, but now the majority of students stay on campus.
The coffee shop is an upmarket area, selling high quality coffee and drinks and a wider selection of snacks and sandwiches at better prices than other coffee shops in the area whilst the deli located in the Refectory dining room sells healthy, fresh food and relieves the pressure on the servery.
One thing everyone can be sure of is - there will no problems about clearing up afterwards.
For more information on Meiko’s warewasher systems simply call 01753 215120, alternatively visit www.meiko-uk.co.uk.
Other Press Releases By This Company
- 19/03/2012 - Launch of Meiko DV 125.2; ideal for schools and colleges
- 19/03/2012 - One third less energy, chemical and water usage with Meiko’s new M-iQ warewashing systems
- 19/03/2012 - Launch of Plasma Clean odour control system
- 15/09/2011 - Economy & Energy Efficienty with Meiko's Ecostar Dishwasher
- 14/09/2011 - The future of warewashing is Energy-Saving
- 14/09/2011 - Economy & Energy Efficiency with Meiko's Ecostar dishwashers
- 14/09/2011 - MEIKO FV40.2G Glasswasher with GiO Module Integrated Reverse Osmosis System
- 18/05/2011 - Meiko speeds service for Buckinghamshire's Hot Meal Initiative
- 18/05/2011 - Meiko's Pass-Through Warewashers Just Keep Getting Better
