Now that the economy is steadily improving, many bakers and snack manufacturers are beginning to invest in new facilities, plant upgrades, production lines and equipment. Changing consumer trends, stricter sanitation regulations, rising energy and ingredient costs and a host of other factors are prompting them to make long-delayed capital investments.
“We have seen a fairly dramatic increase in spending on plants in general and on ingredient-handling systems in particular,” says Bill Kearns, vice president, engineering, at The Fred D. Pfening Co., Columbus, Ohio. “Marketing [or commercializing] new products is most commonly the driving force, but we are also seeing significant plant consolidation, where older, less-efficient facilities are being phased out, and production is moved to new lines in more modern plants. Sanitation considerations have moved to the forefront, with washdown requirements becoming more common and use of stainless steel almost ubiquitous.”