Tag Archives: Combi Oven
27 Jun |
Typical AC Services Monday |
Life is never dull in the ACS offices supporting catering businesses with their Rational ovens. Often what our Office Team copes with seems to go unnoticed. Today’s blog shines some light on Lynne, Neil, Allison and Helen’s work making sure customer’s problems are solved on a typical Monday.
AC Services Monday Emergencies
Bizarrely for some, our Monday starts on Sunday! We check in late Sunday afternoon with the engineer on call on the weekend to see if any calls were attended. And equally importantly those that have been carried over.
This means when Lynne opens up the office at 8.15; they are prepared for the email check from third parties, who want attendance often Monday and if not Tuesday at latest. There are also clients who’ve emailed rather than called. For us there is no difference. We need to respond. And immediately rejuggle our engineers’ visits to fit in the urgent ones with where the engineers are already attending on the day.
Of course, then the calls and emails start for those, who have waited until the office is open. Gone are the days of the office’s post-it whiteboard. This was like fighter command from old war movies. There was a constant rejuggling of the visits to efficiently deal with those that were next to each other. Today it’s a shared spreadsheet. But the activity of keeping our catering colleagues informed is still the same; typically by phone so we know everyone is updated.
Last in is often Helen. She is forgiven as we know she may have been on the phone solving problems already. There were the classic calls from the butchers at 6am and pub at 7. They got their problems sorted by 9 and 10 respectively. Both had very significant events that day so we understood their need; but these very early calls are thankfully the exception. More often Helen is redirecting an engineer from the route planned the previous week for more routine visits.
Supporting Our Customers and Our Engineers
Since ACS started in 1990, much has significantly changed in our office support. We have been running a fully automated service system for over a year now. This minimizes not only physical paperwork, but increases our responsiveness to calls from the information shared.
All jobs are placed on the system so that the engineers can use their mobile app to confirm which site they will be attending. Once there, all parts, timings and follow-up needs are shared. Lynne and Neil in the office can immediately save the jobsheet, prepare estimates should revisits be required, order non-stock parts, send copy jobsheets to third parties; and of course, raise invoices.
Not app-based are the necessary approval phone calls, while on the job for third party clients. Here the engineer informs the office so that Lynne can call the appropriate person for authorization to proceed. On the days she is in, Allison will take card payments if payment is required upfront or check the bank for Bacs payments.
Before leaving for the next job, the engineers always call in to doublecheck if the job on his system is where he is still going. Or whether an emergency has diverted him. This gives the office a chance to ring the customer with an eta. We can then ensure it’s convenient for us to attend at that time and for them to prepare for the engineers visit. We need access to left-hand side panel of the oven, often installed next to a wall. This can cause some disruption to the workings of the kitchen.
Paperwork, Parts and People
By no means are all Monday jobs, emergencies. Many are planned service calls either on regular maintenance plans or ad hoc. These may lead to estimates on costs to be approved or occasionally for parts not carried on the vans.
We repair most ovens first time with our 95+% first-time fix rate. But space constraints on the vans means we can’t carry everything. If parts need to be ordered Neil usually does this and then arranges either have them delivered direct to site or to the office for the engineer to take out.
Of course, once a part is used, it needs to be replaced on the van for when the engineers come in to restock. As Mondays calm down in the afternoon, we pick parts. This is something we do every day to ensure the appropriate van bins are ready for the engineers’ return.
Sometimes visitors come to the office to collect parts and cleaning products. This is when the office team actually get to meet our clients face-to-face rather than by phone or email. This is always a pleasure as it helps build relationships, upon which friendly efficient customer service is based.
For the ACS Office Team, the rest of the week is less manic. Not least as the emergencies are more evenly spread, until we get Friday! But that is a completely other story.
Published Date: 27th June 2024
Category: Blog, Case Study, Catering Business, News
Tags: AC Services, Combi Oven, Maintenance, Servicing
26 Oct |
Saving Catering Business Energy |
With the clocks changing and peak autumn colours reached, now is the time to review hotel and catering business energy costs. Doing it now will maximise profits of the coming festive season and be ready for the winter of 2023.
Many of the changes required on catering business energy will cost some money to implement. Given some sources estimate that catering overspent more than £100Mpa on energy before the cost acceleration of 2022 and is responsible for 8M tonnes of carbon; acting now is good for your future business profit.
Measured start
With any business change, it’s always good to start with measurement. Aside from the regular bill, how do you monitor use? Do you use and does your supplier offer a Smart meter? This gives ongoing readings of your total use. Plug appliance monitors costing £25-30 allow you to check on individual items which use mains plugs. Both enable positive action to reduce waste.
Another conversation with your supplier is whether they are part of the National Grid Off-peak scheme starting in November. Here smart meters enable consumers and businesses to switch some of their use to off-peak hours (typically 1.30-4pm and 11pm to 7am) and receive a substantial reduction on their cost per unit. It also balances the load more effectively to reduce the potential for national and local blackouts.
All caterers could also consider their menu choices based upon the energy required. This is both in the cooking, preparation and storage. Analysis by the Carbon Trust showed that preparation accounts for a quarter of energy use.
Heating balances
40% of total catering business energy use is typically heat. This is skewed upwards by the inclusion of larger hotels, but is key for all in the winter months. A 1°C reduction in temperature can reduce the bill by 8%. Ideal room temperatures are:
- Bars/lounges 20-22°C
- Restaurants 22-24°C
- Kitchens 16-18°C
- Corridors 19-21°C
Key savers are ensuring the boiler is serviced regularly and that thermostats are not badly placed so they’re affected by radiators or draughts. Another one often overlooked is ensuring there is a 5°C deadband between heating and air-conditioning; so that one does not work against the other.
Lighting and water savings
The simple fix is LED and energy efficient bulbs, which can halve the energy used in lighting and will last long enough for the future price increases.
The longer fix is the installation of occupancy sensors to ensure that the lights are only on when needed as there is someone there. The word of caution is to be sensible in areas like corridors and stairwells for safety reasons. These again typically save 30-50%.
Low flow aerators on taps use fewer gallons of water per minute of both hot and cold supplies saving energy and money. Forced air hand driers use 80% less energy due to their efficiency than traditional heated driers. And the simplest saving tip is to remove the scale build-up wherever water is boiled.
Equipment reviews
Refrigeration is a necessary cost for all catering businesses. Regular cleaning and defrosting of fridges and freezers should be a given. But how many of us remember to carefully clean and remove the dust from the coils/panel at the back? Clean panels allow the heat to clear quicker meaning less energy used.
The ideal fill of a fridge is ¾ as this allows air to circulate and food to absorb the cold. Once a fridge has chilled, it uses the same amount of energy whether full or empty. What massively affects energy usage is the door being open for long periods and the fluctuations. It’s worth reviewing:
- how the fridge and other equipment is used and
- optimising by turning off other equipment when not in use.
For equipment it is always essential to consider the whole lifecycle costs not just the cost to purchase. The cost to run a fridge is way higher than the purchase price. Consider the efficiency of all equipment. Tests have shown the two most efficient cooking technologies for catering businesses were induction hobs and combi-ovens. The Caterer estimated that the latter were 25-50% more efficient than the equivalent back in 2015. AC Services would say wouldn’t we, that for Rational efficient energy use has always been a prime consideration.
Act now
Catering business energy costs are set to stay at high levels for some time. Now is the time to act with a mix of easy changes based on reviews of use; and some investment in those that give a longer payback period for the money that needs to be spent.
Our final thought is about community. If your trade only half fills the restaurant, is there space for those who can’t warm their homes to positively nurse a coffee for a couple of hours? Could this be wrapped up into a pay forward scheme, where both are jointly promoted publicly? After all, Covid taught catering businesses to consider all options to survive and manage goodwill.
Published Date: 26th October 2022
Category: Blog, Catering Business, News
Tags: Catering business, Combi Oven, farm shop, Food producers, Hotel, mass catering, Pubs, Restaurant
11 Dec |
AC Services Christmas Opening Times |
So the big day is not far away, for which the country stocks up on totally unnecessary items for the festive period just in case they are needed. It’s amazing what you find on your shelves in February.
But rejoice, it’s at least another year before we hear those dreaded words again – Black Friday – and to put it in a political context, it’s only two more Brexit ministers till Christmas.
Shops have initiated Operation Santa Claus Frenzy and kids are busy writing lists using the Argos catalogue as a template.
If you followed my advice, you will have ordered the necessary cleaning accessories and booked to have your oven checked over before the holidays begin. If you haven’t, then get on to it today. Put it on that list! For those who live by the chaos theory, although the offices are closed on the key dates, we will still have engineers on call on the days in between because we know that sometimes bad things happen at the worst possible time. But just in case you are in any doubt, see below for clarification of our Christmas working hours.
AC Services Christmas Opening Times 2018
Here are AC Services Christmas opening times for 2018:
- Thursday 20th December – normal opening hours – 8.15 a.m. to 5.15 p.m
- Friday 21st December – normal opening hours – 8.15 a.m. to 5.15 p.m
- Saturday 22nd December – office closed – Engineer on call for emergencies
- Sunday 23rd December – office closed – Engineer on call for emergencies
- Monday 24th December – Christmas Eve – office open – 8.15am to 3 p.m
- Tuesday 25th December – Christmas Day, CLOSED
- Wednesday 26th December – Boxing Day, CLOSED
- Thursday 27th December – office open 8.30 a.m. – 5 p.m. (engineers available)
- Friday 28th December – office open 8.30 a.m. – 5 p.m. (engineers available)
- Saturday 29th December – office closed – Engineer on call for emergencies
- Sunday 30th December – office closed – Engineer on call for emergencies
- Monday 31st December – office open – 8.30am to 3 p.m
- Tuesday 1st January – CLOSED
It’s back to normal working hours on Wednesday 2nd January.
If you have an emergency with your appliance telephone 01454 322222 and press the appropriate option so we can help you as quickly as we can. If you have a non-urgent issue, leave a message for when the office is next open.
LAST CHANCE
Importantly, don’t forget to order stock parts and cleaning products. The VERY LAST DATE for guaranteed Christmas delivery for an order to be placed is Wednesday 19th December at 5 p.m. We recommend that you CHECK your stock now, to make sure that you have everything you need.
Published Date: 11th December 2018
Category: Blog, Cleaning Products, News, Ovens, Rational, Service plan
Tags: AC Services, Cleaning Products, Combi Oven, Rational Ovens, Servicing
14 Nov |
Avoid the Rational Oven Cleaning Products Price Increase |
It’s that time of year when you should be thinking about stocking up on Rational oven cleaning products and parts, if you haven’t already.
Prevention is easier than cure and regular cleaning is the easiest form of maintenance. Winter is fast approaching and if you have any problems with your oven; spare a thought for our engineers, who may be hampered by bad weather to get to you.
As a reminder, AC Services (Southern) supply all the assistance you need to service and maintain your oven.
We stock Rational Grill Cleaner, Rational Rinse Aid, Rational Oven Cleaning Tablets for the SCC (SelfCooking Center®) range and for those with Care Control, Rational Care Control Tablets and accessories.
Buy Now
From December 1st, all cleaning products, Rational spare parts and accessories are increasing in price by around 5%. See below for examples:
- 56.00.210 Cleaning Tablets now £59.00 increasing to £62.00 (for SCC units SE, SG, SH and SI)
- 56.00.211 Rinse Tablets currently £39.00 increasing to £41.00 (for SCC Units SE only and CM Units MI only)
- 56.00.562 Care Tablets currently £74.00 increasing to £78.00 (for SCC Units SG, SH and SI and CMP MI)
- 9006.0153 Grill Cleaner Liquid currently £45.00 increasing to £47.00 (for CPC units and CM units ME to MH only.)
However, for those who order before noon on Friday December 15th, current prices will apply on Rational cleaning products (cleaning tablets, rinse tablets, care tablets and liquid grill cleaner). So a simple choice buy now at current prices or wait until after 1st December and use the code TINSEL to get your discount.
The Full Range of Rational Cleaning Products
Here at AC Services, we provide a full range of Rational oven cleaning products. If you have more than one oven, then you may need different cleaning product combinations. As a reminder, we supply:
- Rational Oven Cleaner Tab (x100): highly concentrated tablets specially developed with a new complex set of active ingredients designed to guarantee maximum cleaning power.
- the Rational Oven Care Tablets (x150) with special scale-dissolving ingredients contained to prevent limescale building up, giving reliability without a water softener and the need for time-consuming descaling.
- Rational Rinse Tablets (x50) highly effective care products ensuring active protection.
- the Rational Grill Cleaner (10 litres) for use with a hand spray gun.
- Rational Rinse Aid (10 litres).
We also supply for water filtration. This is either the Brita Purity 1200 Quell ST Filter Cartridge or the Brita Purity 600 Quell ST Filter Cartridge. Water filter products are not in the sale.
To order your Rational oven cleaning products, simply go to our on-line shop. Or call us on 01454 322222 for more advice of how to keep on top of your Rational oven cleaning and to book a service so your oven is fully ready for the Christmas rush.
Published Date: 14th November 2017
Category: Blog, Cleaning Products, News, Online Sales
Tags: Cleaning Products, Combi Oven, SelfCookingCenter®, whitefficiency®
09 Feb |
A RATIONAL Future for Combi Ovens |
2016 is set to be a busy year according to MD of RATIONAL UK, Lee Norton both for his brand and for the combi oven market in general.
There is a definite trend for kitchens getting smaller, workforces being streamlined and value for money being appreciated.
“Consumers are more choosy when it comes to food,” he comments. “Where they eat relies on two main issues: consistency of food, service and quality. And when it comes to meeting these requirements, more and more food venues are turning towards the combi oven.”
Combi Oven Benefits
The benefits of a combi oven are myriad. Not only is the cooking enhanced but a combi oven reduces the number of appliances required within a kitchen, hence a smaller carbon footprint. This equates to cost savings in terms of energy, which is a key incentive for catering establishments.
In addition, continues Mr Norton, the versatility of a combi oven augments the variety of food able to be delivered. “Healthier foods are now a major requirement for both public and private caterers,” he explains.
“The RATIONAL Self Cooking Center oven can deliver a fully cooked breakfast with no additional fat or oil. Major catering names such as Premier Inn are now implementing the concept as they realise the cost savings in terms of reduced cooking times and fewer appliances such as separate frying pans, and a reduced number of kitchen staff.”
70% Combi Oven Market Share
RATIONAL still holds in the region of 70% of the UK combi oven market share, with growth expected to yet again reach double digits in the next twelve months.
“The catering industry received a major boost in 2014 with the introduction of free school meals, and this also had a positive effect on the private sector, which realised an exponential growth last year,” continues Mr Norton.
“We have seen an expansion in our own personnel:
- We now have 23 development chefs around the UK and a comprehensive service partner network, of which AC Services (Southern) is a vital player.
- We have more than 200 engineers providing same day coverage, with a first time fix rate in excess of 95%.
These are statistics of which we are very proud as we excel in providing excellent after sales service by trained and audited personnel in all areas, from chefs to engineers.”
What’s Ahead for RATIONAL?
“We are not sitting on our laurels,” concludes Mr Norton. “We still invest heavily in new product development.
We have recently produced the VarioSmoker, extending the functionality of the RATIONAL combi oven to produce smoked food. With a growing trend towards Mexican and Brazilian cuisine, this has been extremely well received”.
“And our most recent launch was the Cross and Stripe Grill Grate, which allows perfect steaks to be cooked in the oven, not in a pan or on a griddle, and with the traditional bar marks. This innovation provides a healthier and more cost efficient way to cooking the perfect meat.”
Consistency and quality are what customers look for in their food suppliers, and RATIONAL adopts these qualities in its everyday operations. If you cater for the public and are looking for cost efficiency, healthy cooking and a lower carbon footprint, look no further than a RATIONAL combi oven.
Published Date: 9th February 2016
Category: Blog, Catering Business, News, Ovens, Rational
Tags: Catering business, Combi Oven, Rational Ovens, SelfCookingCenter®
21 Jan |
Mass Catering with Fine Dining Cooking Standards |
Mass catering doesn’t automatically have to mean the type of cooking that many people associate with canteen style cuisine. Before we get tons of comments from disgruntled canteen chefs, we’d better elaborate that that’s not supposed to infer that canteens cook badly. But they do tend to get put under a lot of pressure to serve food in bulk quantities, and things like al dente pasta and vegetables, and the quality of presentation can, and often do, suffer.
Technology Marches On
We all remember the jokes we used to make about mass catering and school dinners in particular, (and we expect they’re still being made). But things have moved on big time in terms of kitchen equipment in the past 2 or 3 decades. Technology now exists that allows mass catering and fine dining to go hand in hand. So if your dream business is to serve top quality cooking to a discerning audience, such as a large group of wedding reception guests for example, you can compete for cooking quality with some of the top restaurants in the country. Continue reading
Published Date: 21st January 2013
Category: News, Rational, Self Cooking Centre, White Efficiency
Tags: Combi Oven, Rational Ovens, SelfCookingCenter®, whitefficiency®
09 Jan |
Did your wish at Christmas for a new Rational oven come true? |
If not, then for 2013 make it your New Year’s Resolution to buy a Rational SCC White Efficiency or a Rational Combimaster Plus Oven.
Not sure what oven size you need or what model is right for you?
Then your first choice is to visit the Hospitality Show on the 21 – 23 January at the NEC Birmingham, where Rational UK have a stand and will be able to discuss your requirements and demonstrate the SCC White Efficiencies capabilities to help you decide what you need from your most important investment in 2013. For details on the Show visit the website. Continue reading
Published Date: 9th January 2013
Category: News, Ovens, Rational, Self Cooking Centre
Tags: Combi Oven, Rational Ovens, SelfCookingCenter®, whitefficiency®
24 Sep |
Top Tips for Choosing an Oven for Residential Homes, Nursing Homes and Hospitals |
Choosing an oven for residential homes, nursing homes and hospitals brings with it, it’s own special set of circumstances. These need to be carefully considered when looking around to find the right product. There are of course the usual pre-requisites to be considered, namely:
• Oven Specification
• Oven Performance
• Ease of Operation
• Running Costs
• Ease of Maintenance
• Original Investment Cost
There are many commercial ovens on the market today that cover many of these salient points. But only one meets them all, and more besides. These are the whitefficiency® range of ovens manufactured by Rational. A whitefficiency® oven is not just an oven, it is a highly automated SelfCookingCenter®. It is ideal when choosing an oven for residential homes, nursing homes and hospitals. Continue reading
Published Date: 24th September 2012
Category: News
Tags: AC Services, Combi Oven
09 Jul |
Buying a Combi Oven for a Pub, Hotel or Restaurant? – Top Tips from AC Services (Southern) |
A Combi Oven manufactured by Rational Ovens will provide you with one of the finest ovens or self cooking centres in the world. If you’re planning the launch of a new pub, hotel or restaurant enterprise, one of the most important decisions you will have to make, is the type of oven(s) you will need. It’s not an easy decision to make. In fact if you get it wrong, it could adversely affect the success of your new venture.
Here at AC Services (Southern) we are rated as one of the top service partners for Rational Ovens in the South of England, the South West, and in Southern Wales. And it’s not just us who say so. It’s our client base, and you can’t say fairer than that. What better reference could you possibly get than those who know from first-hand experience?
We’ve been servicing and repairing ovens since 1990, and Rational Ovens in particular since 1999. During these past 22 years we have learnt everything there is to know about the ups and downs of working with a Combi Oven. And now the team at AC Services (Southern) are prepared to pass that knowledge back into the trade by giving you, the buyer, some hot tips on what to look out for when considering your options.
Choose from the Rational Combi Oven Range
We make no apology for putting Rational Ovens at the forefront of your buying plans. Rational manufacture some of the best quality Combi Ovens in the world. Their reliability and their longevity are up there with the very best. In our opinion, (and we should know – we’ve serviced all types of ovens in our 22 years in business), they are the very best!
Getting to Know Your Menu
The first thing you have to take into consideration is what sort of food you will be cooking. Getting to know your menu, or your menu types, is absolutely key to understanding which is the best Combi to meet your needs.
Feeding the Four or the Four Thousand?
Knowing what quantity of dishes you’re going to be cooking is essential to your decision making process. Whether you will need a single station Combi Oven, or a multi station Combi is a must.
Getting to know the Rational Product Range
The Self Cooking Centre “white efficiency” is the cream of the crop as far as combis are concerned. With this fantastic product you can roast, grill, steam, bake, all in the one oven. It can even be programmed to cook overnight!
With a Self Cooking Centre “white efficiency” oven you get Rationals’ unique, patented High Density Control feature that provides you with total control at your fingertips, whether you’re cooking small or large dishes and batches. The level heat distribution is superb, guaranteeing that everything is cooked to perfection. There’s even “Self Cooking Control” a wonderful design that means every individual dish gets monitored, and you are alerted when they are each ready, regardless of the variety of food types and sizes.
Ease of Operation and Servicing
One of the biggest factors has got to be how easy a Rational Self Cooking Centre “white efficiency” Combi Oven is to operate, and how simple it is to get serviced. These are both areas where AC Services (Southern) have direct input. Whilst we don’t sell Rational Ovens directly ourselves, we do install them, and our fully trained installation engineers will arrange for you and your staff to get full training to ensure that you’re all fully au-fait with how to operate your chosen combi oven.
Last but by no means least, purchasing one of the Rational Ovens range of combis or self cooking centres, and appointing AC Services (Southern) as your servicing/repair partner, will guarantee you the lowest and shortest possible down-time.
An Unbeatable Combination
The best combination for your combi oven needs is Rational Ovens for the hardware, and AC Services (Southern) for the maintenance, service and repairs. It’s a match made in cooking heaven
Published Date: 9th July 2012
Category: News
Tags: Combi Oven, Hotel, Restaurant