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  3. Parts Town UK Product Training Day: Key Considerations For A Commercial Kitchen
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On the 7th and 8th of February 2024, Lockhart and AGGORA employees attended an exciting training day at the Parts Town HQ in Cannock. The two days included never-before-seen sessions with suppliers working together to provide the highest quality information on how to deliver customers with the best equipment and recommendations.

The day began with a full group session with AGGORA's Managing Director, Ross Emery and Lockhart's Category Controller, Richard Smith, who gave an overview of good and safe practices. This included best practices of equipment, supply process, equipment specifics, lifetime value, sustainability and PPM maintenance.

For the remainder of the day, the whole group was divided into four smaller groups for four separate sessions with suppliers. The suppliers provided information about how to deliver the best outcomes for customers. This included:

  • The key objectives of the clients' requirements
  • How to identify the right equipment
  • What to consider around kitchen workflows
  • Considerations around power requirements and energy in use
  • How future proofing equipment can help operations
  • Up-selling opportunities
  • The benefits of extended warranties
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    The Suppliers:

    Rational

    The RATIONAL Group is the worldwide market and technology leader for hot food preparation in professional kitchens. Founded over 45 years ago, in 1973, the company employs more than 850 people in Germany and a total of over 2300 employees worldwide. RATIONAL's primary corporate objective has always been to offer the maximum possible benefits to its customers.

    Product Focus

    Rational training session focused on their Combination ovens; highly advanced machines that cooks food using steam, convection or a combination of both. These powerful machines can allow businesses to roast, poach, steam, grill, bake, shallow fry and even sous vide or smoke food. Learn more about Combination Ovens here.

    Key Considerations

    When purchasing a Combination Oven, there are 4 key factors to consider:

  • Size/Space - What are the dimensions of the space you are purchasing for?
  • Power Supply - Do you want gas or electric? This is determined by your existing kitchen power supply.
  • Control - Do you prefer manual or programmable Combi Ovens? Some chefs prefer the hands-on feel of manual control. However, modern programmable ovens have large tablet-style touchscreen panels.
  • Extraction - In most cases, extraction is a legal requirement. Electric ovens may have the option for built-in extraction for an additional cost.
  • Darren Horris, Regional Sales Director of Rational UK explains" today has seen useful sessions and a really organized event. It's good to get the opportunity to speak to all the Lockhart and AGGORA employees and to talk about the benefits and the understanding of combination technology."

    Shop Rational Here

    Merrychef

    At Merrychef, they have built our entire history on shaping the future, bringing breakthroughs to life to further expand your opportunities. As we now look ahead, their excited to work with you and continue their tradition of solving tomorrow's challenges - today. All their products are designed to streamline your workflow. By keeping the entire space in mind when creating new solutions, they can make equipment that's not only streamlined and easy to use, but also truly connected to the rest of your kitchen.

    Product Focus

    Merrychef's training session focused on their Accelerated Cooking Ovens; a combination of microwave, convection and tune impingement cooking. These ovens empower businesses to easily add hot food to their offering or shorten queues and speed-up service for their existing offering. Learn more about ACO here.

    Key Considerations

    If you're a deli, coffee shop or cafe, you should be asking yourself these 3 key questions before considering a new cooking facility:

  • What are you cooking?
  • How much are you cooking?
  • What is your budget?
  • Bill Perry, Key Account Manager for Merrychef, explains "It's fantastic to be at the event today to present in front of all Lockhart and AGGORA salespeople. The aim of today is to provide the kind a level of education, so that they know how to properly specify equipment for customers and to make sure that those customers are using the equipment correctly."

    Shop Merrychef Here

    rational

    Falcon Foodservice Equipment

    Falcon Foodservice Equipment has been in business for almost 200 years. The company provides the catering industry with a comprehensive range of reliable, innovative and efficient products, all built to the highest quality standards in their modern manufacturing facility in Stirling, Scotland. All Falcon products are built in accordance with the internationally recognized ISO 9001:2000 quality management standard. Falcon's product portfolio encompasses oven ranges, grills, fryers, pasta boilers, chargrills, induction, convection and combination ovens.

    Kevin Veitch, Head of National Accounts at Falcon Foodservice Equipment, explains "We are pleased to be invited by Lockhart and AGGORA for this event at Parts Town UK. It's been very engaging with the groups that have come round to see us and we have found that the questions that have been asked have challenged us, which is what we like."

    Shop Falcon Foodservice Equipment Here

    Blue Seal

    The Moffat Group head office is in Melbourne with sales offices located in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide in Australia, Christchurch and Auckland in New Zealand, Birmingham in the United Kingdom and Winston Salem, North Carolina in the United States. Moffat / Blue Seal has a well-developed global distribution strategy with the Moffat group exporting to over 50 countries globally. They are close to their customers and use their products and outstanding after sales warranty and support to meet the unique needs of their clients. Their manufacturing facilities are in Christchurch New Zealand and Brisbane Australia. The Moffat group designs, develops, manufactures and markets comprehensive range of Foodservice and Bakery equipment.

    Glenn Danks, UK Branch Manager for Blue Seal, explains "Attending the Lockhart and AGGORA event has given us a great opportunity to meet all of the people that will be selling our products, getting to know them better, and also introducing basic products and ideas that will help them in their day-to-day business."

    Shop Blue Seal Here

    Product Focus

    Falcon Foodservice Equipment and Blue seal training sessions focused on Horizontal cooking equipment; induction hobs, fryers, bratt pans, grills, convection ovens and griddles.

    Key Considerations

    When purchasing horizontal cooking equipment, there are many considerations to make including:

  • Will it fit into the kitchen?
  • What's the budget?
  • What is the fuel source?
  • What is the power supply?
  • Where is the location of services?
  • What is the cooking performance like?
  • Is it easy to use? Is there a level of skill needed?
  • Is it easy to clean?
  • Does it need back up equipment?
  • Is there any after sales service / warranty?
  • Does it require spare parts?
  • Can the equipment be recycled?
  • What is the appropriate product range for the business?
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    Classeq

    Classeq stands for simplicity. Every facet of the Classeq brand reinforces this message. Their products are engineered with simplicity in mind. They are easy to choose and install; simple for their customers to use; and simple to maintain & clean. Complemented by high quality manufacture, dependable, robust build and friendly service - Classeq always provides clean, reliable and quality results at affordable prices.

    Nick Burridge, National Sales Manager at Classeq, explains "it's been a great day doing training with the employees of Lockhart and AGGORA, mostly on knowledge of the Warewashing processes and making sure that they are able to specify the right bit of equipment for their customers. The feedback we have had so far has been positive and the information we passed on will hopefully go a long way."

    Shop Classeq Here

    Winterhalter

    Winterhalter, a family name, is known for highly engineered glass, dish and utensil washers. All their products have been manufactured to help reduce the use of electricity and water, making them some of the most sustainable available. The technology invested in their products makes sure that every machine can deliver the perfect wash result, regardless of your industry or what you're washing. They pride themselves on being the No.1 in the UK for Commercial Warewashing Technology.

    Glenn Roberts, National Head of Sales at Winterhalter UK, explains "its been really interesting to meet lots of people from Lockhart and AGGORA to discuss the world of Warewashing and how important it is to specify the right product, for the right reason, for the customers. We are really focusing on energy efficiency and sustainability and making sure that the products are fit for purpose."

    Shop Winterhalter Here

    Hobart

    At HOBART, they take pride in providing reliable, high quality kitchen equipment that has been engineered and tested to ensure that whatever challenges the days bring - you can make it happen with HOBART: High performance in your kitchen. For decades, they have been the world market leader for commercial Warewashing technology. They serve customers such as hotels, restaurants and caterers, large-scale catering establishments, bakers and butchers, supermarkets, industrial companies, airlines and cruise ships all over the world.

    Cara Williams, Sales Director at Hobart, explains "today has been a fantastic opportunity for us to come and support the partnership with Lockhart and AGGORA and also for us to use it as an educational day for our team as well"

    Shop Hobart Here

    Product focus

    Classeq, Winterhalter and Hobart's training session was focused on Warewashing; glasswashers, dishwashers, passthrough ranges and utensil ranges.

    Key Considerations

    When specifying the right products for your business, its important to consider the following:

  • How many days is the business open?
  • How busy is the site?
  • Do you want to save energy?
  • Do you have multiple sites?
  • Are you interested in remote monitoring of the equipment?
  • What are the expectations of the wash results?
  • What is the budget?
  • How long does the machine need to last?
  • Is ease of use and cleaning important?
  • What type of power supply will be use?
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    Foster

    Foster Refrigerator manufactures a wide range of award-winning commercial refrigeration for the foodservice, bakery and retail industries. They supply a range of Foster products including fridges and freezers, blast chillers and chiller rooms. Their Foster range offers fantastic value for money, with all products featuring a 3-year parts and labour warranty as standard.

    Stefan Wilcock, Regional Business Manager, explains "It's good to see everybody in one room and I think the real positive is getting out a real base level of information for everyone to build on. I think everybody being in different positions and different areas of the businesses and getting a solid foundation of knowledge to move forward and work together."

    Shop Foster Here

    Williams

    Williams Refrigeration is one of the world's leading manufacturers and suppliers of award-winning professional refrigeration and has built a global reputation over the years for performance, quality and value for money. Their vast product range includes high performance, energy efficient and sustainable refrigerated cabinets and counters, blast chillers, cold rooms, back bar, front of house display and specialist bakery equipment.

    Andy Ward, Area Manager for Williams Refrigeration, explains "The main highlight of today was working with our competition for the good of Lockhart and AGGORA and getting out there the information of how they should be looking at refrigeration."

    Shop Williams Here

    Product Focus

    Foster's and Williams training session was focused on Refrigeration; cabinets, counters, display, blast chillers, icemakers, prep counters, cold rooms and back-bars.

    Key Considerations

    When purchasing the right refrigeration for your business, its important to consider general specifications:

  • Where is it going to be fitted?
  • How are you expecting the unit to operate?
  • What is the unit going to be used for?
  • What is the expected lifespan of the equipment if looked after correctly?
  • Is there optional warranty?
  • Will there be a site survey?
  • foster

    PR Contact

    Simon Britten, Head of Marketing


    Comments

    Lockhart Catering on 8 February 2024 10:00 AM

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