The ATMOS/phere determines the quality

Mr. Reichenbach, you have made a lot of technological progress in recent years. Please tell us about it. As you know, ATMOS has been outfitting bakeries in Europe for over 30 years, where we provide intensive support. By identifying weak points, we have developed unique solutions. AMG designs and patents technologies that lead to premium quality with specific hygiene measures. Ventilation technology is only a small part of the overall solution to achieve better freshness or an extended shelf life of baked goods anywhere in the world with different climates. Today, we pass on our know-how to baking entrepreneurs together with engineers, scientists and economists in the AMG team.

How does AMG Reichenbach GmbH meet the demand for premium quality through hygiene? In keeping with the Bauhaus principle of "form follows function", production should be tailored to the requirements of the products and consumers, and not products that are conditioned to the possibilities of the environment in order to reflect the desired best-before date or to save costs – and all of this without greenwashing when it comes to sustainability requirements. In the AMG team, we want to counteract the negative developments we have identified in conventional production methods according to the motto "form follows performance". Widespread errors are often not recognized by planners and users. Food should once again become food with tradition and innovation in premium quality - economically, ecologically and socially for everyone involved. Where does the spirit of innovation for the AMG MasterKonzept come from? My great-grandfather Albert Reichenbach I (1861-1942) was already a visionary as an inventor and social, forward-thinking entrepreneur. Albert II, my grandfather, brought these visions into the world as a businessman. Albert III developed many things technically. Finally, I, Albert IV, brought this DNA into the baking industry. This is how the trendsetting MasterKonzept was born. It was only logical to bundle the experience gained into an encompassing system that would be unique.

Why should a bakery entrepreneur choose your personal advice? Our weak point analysis, or rather risk analysis, allows errors to be identified and basic solutions for quality assurance and energy optimization to be shown. It starts with the current situation, from which the catalog of measures is derived, then comes the planning with our patented systems and finally the support of the implementation and, if desired, a results audit. With minimal payback times, we are now able to support both craft and industrial companies for their sustainability and future security.

Why do you recommend a production audit? An audit accompanied by an inspection gives us the opportunity to show simple, cost-effective solutions depending on the customer's requirements and to systematically eliminate weak points.

Why is the AMG MasterKonzept better than plans from others? Thanks to our team's physics and biological knowhow, constant conditions for each production step can be configured product-specifically and safely. Our concept identifies the existing process-related imbalances, e.g. between a dough's water activity and relative ambient humidity, for the first time, and uses innovative climate strategies to achieve qualitative, hygienic and energy-related benefits across the board. Controlled process steps allow deviations to be significantly minimized.

How do you see the impact of climate change? The ever higher and longer-lasting temperatures mean that, in absolute terms, ever higher water levels are already being stored in the outside air. Severe weather events, in which large amounts of water, sometimes over 100 L/m2, condense out in a very short time, lead to heavy rain and place an above-average burden on the climate in the bakery in terms of hygiene and ergonomics. As a result, the temperature sometimes drops by over 10 K. This in turn means that the relative humidity within production also increases quickly. Climate change enriches the outside air with 7 g of water in summer and 14 g in winter for every 1 K increase in temperature. Even with the existing standard fluctuations of 10 g too little humidity in the room air in winter and 10 g too much in the outside air in summer, this should be humidified or dehumidified. In Central Europe, it is hygienically necessary to humidify or dehumidify the room air so that the individual process steps can take place with only minimal climate deviations. For many bakeries, climate change in production is extremely damaging to products and ergonomics. For many bakery companies, climate change in production is extremely damaging to products and ergonomics. That is why we also recommend reducing the number of airborne germs and surface germs in three dimensions and across the board during the cleaning phase using the new, plant-based Hygienic_101.

Employee retention is the top issue for the future in Europe today. What can AMG contribute to this? Generation Z wants to avoid night work and wants an attractive work/life balance if possible. If the workplace has constant, comfortable conditions that are independent of the season and weather - temperature, relative humidity, minimal dust and germ levels – this increases the attractiveness of the workplace exorbitantly. Employees today choose their workplace based on its attractiveness. In addition, entrepreneurs have to share success with their team during this special time. With better products, higher contribution margins can be generated and higher wages can be paid. In clean working conditions with less CO2, dust and mold spores, employees will do better, consistent work, be happier, stay healthier and devote their labor to the company for longer. Allergies, sick leave and motivational difficulties are significantly reduced by our systems.

Are the AMG concepts affordable for both small and large companies? Using specific measures, it is possible to demonstrate an economical solution scaled to any company size using our findings. The environment and the individual process steps are adapted to the products and not the products to the economic constraints and short-term compromise solutions. Where do you always get the inspiration for further innovations? As a qualified factory planner, both technical and commercial, I have personally advised many baking entrepreneurs and have always found solutions for operational weak points. In production buildings it is like in the mountains, in the tropics or on a lake: the difference in altitude, the day/night temperature gradient, the interaction of the absolute water content, the changing O2/CO2 content, the lack of hygienic equilibrium humidity in each process step and finally the recontamination are crucial for hygiene and thus the quality that reaches the consumer. Constant hygiene conditions with controlled CO2 values ​​as one of the critical control points ensure an optimized implementation of the HACCP principle for premium quality and equally healthy product compatibility.

Why do you have this R&D ambition for bakers? After I was able to help plan baker Peter's glass bakery in Essen in the 1990s with the then first requirement of 'transparent hygiene' for everyone to see, while at the same time optimizing energy, it was always the vision to transfer these considerations to new and existing companies. Since every company is different with its own specific product portfolio and special sales markets, tailor-made concepts are required. Today, we allow our decades of experience from over a thousand completed projects across Europe to flow holistically and individually to our demanding customers. We also see potential for saving energy and therefore CO2 in all process steps.

Can premium quality create a better world for everyone? If returns of up to 30% and the raw materials and energy required for them can be avoided, a lot has been achieved. By preventing and minimizing, for example, mold growth and mycotoxin contamination on surfaces or in baked goods, both workplace quality and food safety for consumers can be increased. Baked goods then have a longer shelf life and can be consumed for longer.

What does sustainability mean to you? For me, sustainability means preserving traditional knowledge and using innovations in a socially and healthily way so that the company can make attractive profits and grow substantially. Performance must be worthwhile for everyone, including the environment. We have the expertise to plan this for the bakery entrepreneur so that he can fully concentrate on his strengths for the consumers.