Overrun is a term that is used frequently in the ice cream trade. In simple terms, it’s the percentage of air that is held within a frozen product such as ice cream, gelato or sorbet.

All ice cream, gelato and sorbet products naturally have a percentage of air. Without air, they would be too dense and hard, lacking the beautifully smooth texture which you associate with quality a product.

Air increases the volume of the finished product, you probably already know this increases profit, but obviously, too much air can lower the quality of the product considerably.

On average, one litre of liquid ice cream mix before being frozen weighs approximately 1 kilo, the same weight of frozen mix will no longer fit in a 1 litre container, it now requires a 1.4 litre container due to the increase in volume due to the air content. As such, frozen ice cream products are more often sold by volume rather than their weight.

All frozen products have a different percentage of air, typically but not definitively some examples are:

Scoop Gelato – Typically 25-30%

Scoop Ice Cream – Typically 50-60%

Soft Serve Ice Cream (gravity machine) – Typically 30-35%

Soft Serve Ice Cream (pump machine) – Typically 60-80%

We have produced an Overrun Calculator which you can download here to help work out your own overrun.

Download it here

World leaders in ice cream machines

Teknoice is a leading Ice Cream Machines manufacturer, offering a complete range of equipment, from stand-alone machines to complete layouts.

The company was started in 1992 and has grown into an international company selling worldwide. Teknoice has over 1200 clients in almost 100 countries worldwide, with 5 offices.

We are now the appointed UK Agency for Teknoice Ice Cream Machinery and look forward to offering the complete range of new ice cream machines including the superb new ‘Deep Ice’ machine which offers a superior ice cream product by operating at -10 degrees to produce less ice crystals giving a smoother, more palatable texture.

See the complete range of Teknofreeze ice cream machines here

We’d like to thank everyone for their business, support and assistance during what has been an unprecedented time for us all.

Wishing you and your family a restful Christmas break, we hope you stay safe and we look forward to some normality re-emerging next year.

From everyone at Machinery World

Combining the best of the old with the best of the new can give you outstanding results, as just one mouthful of the delectable Handmade Ice Cream Company premium selection will testify: produced using a combination of new and refurbished equipment from Machinery World, the mouth-watering flavours bring the skills of a former pastry chef right into your tub.

After fifteen years as a pastry chef in top hotels, Steven Darvill started a wholesale ice cream business with a difference, using his patisserie expertise to bake perfect cakes – then crumb them down to create the finest ice cream recipes.  Eight years on, he has expanded production and also opened his first retail unit in Ulverston, Cumbria.

My business ethos is to make ice cream as a chef would make it if they had the equipment and the time to craft it themselves,” explains Steven.  “Combining old skills with new, plus, of course, the finest 100% natural ingredients, I create around 35 – 40 bespoke flavours, and make the most of in-season produce – so both my blackberry, cinnamon and apple crumble and my gingerbread ice creams are current favourites, fitting perfectly into hotel seasonal menus.

My business ambition has always been to operate my own ice cream parlours as well as wholesale,” continues Steven, “so earlier this year I took over a bigger unit in Greenodd, Ulverston, which has expanded my production capacity and is also open to the public, with click and collect proving extremely popular over lockdown.

To achieve higher output without compromising on quality, Steven bought a Promag Easymix 120 batch pasteuriser from Machinery World, trading in his old machine to mitigate costs.

I bought a second-hand, serviced machine from Machinery World a few years ago, which has worked brilliantly for me, so I went straight to them to talk about my new business requirements,” says Steven.  “The great thing about Machinery World is that they sell new and used artisan/batch machines as well as their own ROKK industrial range, so you get a fair trade-in price for your old machine – and they make the process so quick and easy, even at the busiest time of the year.

As well as the comprehensive choice of machines – both refurbished and new – available from Machinery World, the main reason Steven went to them was because he knew he would get an honest recommendation of the right machine for his business expansion. 

What I find so refreshing about Machinery World is that they really take time to understand your business needs and what is right for you.  Instead of simply trying to sell you something, they give you all the information you need, and let you make the decision yourself,

says Steven. 

Everyone at Machinery World is extremely knowledgeable and they are such genuine people, I know that they would give me an honest opinion even if I phoned to ask about a machine from someone else,” he continues.  “Mind, you, given the extensive range they stock, I can’t imagine I would need to look elsewhere anyway!

The next challenge for the former pastry chef is to open a second ice cream parlour in a popular lakeside location, so even more customers can enjoy his delicious ice cream.

Theo Paphitis, Entrepreneur and former Dragons’ Den star believes the pandemic has fast-forwarded business by five years according to an interview with the BBC back in May 2020.

Change that previously may have taken 2-3 years minimum to implement was achieved in weeks. Cloud based services have enabled sectors such as education to rapidly switch from physical to virtual learning. Other businesses have adapted by switching their focus from car manufacturers making ventilators to fashion houses making PPE.

Online shopping has increased the fortunes of e-commerce businesses and been increased by those who would have never attempted it previously. Zoom (or Teams, whichever your preferred flavour) has enabled business meetings to be conducted quickly and efficiently without the hassle of travel or take the time it used to involve.

This obviously all has an impact on businesses that relied on these traditional ways of life as we knew them. Retail will never be the same, also echoed by Theo Paphitis, travel, whether by car, rail or air have all been affected and unlikely to ever revert to exactly the way things were. Offices aren’t quite as critical as they once seemed, that evening out at a restaurant now being thought about as not quite as appealing maybe?

The world evolves and unfortunately, there will be those who suffer as a result, but there is nothing that can be done to revert to the way things were.

At Machinery World, like most businesses, the last six months have been challenging, but we continue to operate as normally as possible. We’re still taking plenty of orders and although we’re not an e-commerce business, we’re fully utilising our website and social media channels, ensuring we take even more videos and post these on-line to showcase our machinery.

We continue to ship orders worldwide with a recent factory installation in Barbados, along with further business conducted face to face in Turkey and Ireland recently.

If you would like any advice on purchasing machinery, have machinery to sell or need machinery servicing or repairing, please get in touch through the normal channels and we’ll be more than happy to assist.

Founded in the 1930’s by the Hartley family, the traditional Cumbrian ice cream parlour was a second home to Les Richardson who, as a schoolboy, would give Mr Hartley a hand odd-jobbing, before taking a full-time position in the iron ore mine.  In the 1980’s, he returned to his early years’ passion, buying first a half share and then the whole Hartley’s Ice Cream business.  

Son Mark followed in his father’s footsteps, helping out in his youth before pursuing a career at the local nuclear plant.  He returned to the business in 1990 and, in 1995, he met and traded with Paul Crowter, to buy his first ever homogeniser – and Paul’s first ever sale.

Paul had followed a similar career pattern to me, having returned to work with his dad in the ice cream business after many years in the fire service, Mark remembers, and we hit it off straight away.  He had such a passion for the ice cream industry and convinced me that the APV Gaulin K3 homogeniser would change my life – and he was right!  It was a complete eye-opener from our point of view – it did its job so well and, thanks to the excellent servicing, it never went wrong.

Mark and Paul have continued to meet and talk machines over the past 25 years at trade exhibitions, so when the time came for Mark to upgrade, he went straight to Paul and the ROKK range.

I had absolutely no hesitation in going to Paul and the Machinery World team,” continues Mark.  “I can’t think of anyone who knows more about the ice cream business.  They understand their customers’ equipment needs so well – possibly better than we do – and will recommend the perfect machine for each operator.  Combine this with the fantastic workmanship of the ROKK machinery and the brilliant aftercare service from the backroom staff: I just wouldn’t contemplate going elsewhere.

Mark invested in a brand new ROKK Series 3 Homogeniser and is absolutely delighted with the quality, durability and ease of use of his new purchase.

The ROKK is really quick to learn once you’ve had the initial training from the MW engineers – and so much more efficient,” says Mark.  “We have reduced production time by a third and significantly increased the smoothness and texture of our ice cream.  I couldn’t be more delighted with my new addition, and hope to add a ROKK pasteuriser and ROKK RFE continuous freezer to the stable in due course.

And what of the old K3? It’s still in perfect working order and carefully stored at MW HQ in Wolvey, after Paul bought it back from Mark as a nostalgic reminder that you should always fully understand your customers’ business so that you can recommend the perfect machine for their needs every time!

In today’s brave new world of buying local and staycationing, it’s good to know you can make the finest gelato in a continuous gelato / ice cream freezer by ROKK, a 100% British company, without having to compromise on quality or value – and as the customers of North Wales based Red Boat Gelato will testify, you simply close your eyes, open your taste buds – and you’re in an Italian piazza.

Having trained in Bologna under some of the finest gelato chefs, Tony Green brought his expertise and passion for reinventing the world’s favourite puddings as gelato creations to Anglesey in 2010.  The opening of his first outlet in Beaumaris was soon followed by an additional four outlets and a rising growth in B2B orders. Last year he took an industrial unit and has now bought a ROKK RFE400 continuous freezer so that he could produce the same quality gelato in small pot and tub format to satisfy growing customer demand.

“The taste and texture of gelato is of paramount importance to me”, says Tony “and I never compromise on quality, using the finest ingredients, our unique recipes and, of course, the best possible equipment. With the growth of my B2B trade, I needed to source a machine which had the versatility to fill both individual and larger pots with perfect gelato, matching, or even bettering, the texture and consistency of our existing Artisan made product.”

“Having known Phil Darvell from ROKK Processing for over a decade, I asked him for suggestions – and ultimately selected the ROKK RFE continuous freezer.  One of the reasons for my choice is the ability to fill the small pots direct from the machine – so no more spatulas and up to your elbows in mix!”

The ROKK RFE continuous freezer series has a unique Veloce-freeze barrel technology system, boasting market-leading energy transfer which enables super-efficient cooling and freezing of the mix.  The ‘Veloce’ – or ‘Fast’ in English – system has been developed in-house by the engineering team, who have extensive experience in freezer technology.  Launched in 2012, the technology has been tried and tested in the UK marketplace with 87 machines built to date and many more all over the world.

“Our ROKK freezer is easy to use and extremely versatile,” continues Tony. “The design is simple, yet highly practical, which means it does everything we need it to do, but there are fewer things that can go wrong.  We use the manual set-up, but the machine has the capacity to go fully automated if we choose.  Most importantly, the freeze barrel technology ensures that the quality of the product is excellent, producing the highest quality and consistency of gelato mix each and every time we use it.”

Red Boat have received very positive feedback from both B2B and retail customers, and anticipate a further expansion of the pot range over the coming months to meet the demand for higher quality treats that can be shared at home.  

So, as we cautiously emerge into the summer months, customers will be guaranteed a delicious taste of Italy in the comfort of their own homes:

Merf: “My Red Boat Party Box arrived! Yum! 🍧
Ordered online and delivered. Great service and delicious Ice Cream. 😋”

Carol: “Delicious ice cream, some of the best I’d ever tasted – rivalled that sold in Italy!”

We are pleased to announce we are now authorised distributors of HST Krones homiogenizers.

Leaders in homogenizer technology

HST Krones are leaders in homogenisation technology. Backed up by many years of experience, the HST team has an exceptional level of professional knowledge and expertise in the engineering, production, service and sales of high-pressure homogenizers.

HST Krones have a long history in homogenization technology.

• In 1898, Wilhelm G. Schröder built his first high-pressure homogenizer for Eismix in the north German city of Lübeck.
• In 1900, the technology was exhibited at the World’s Fair in Paris.
• In 1965, the world’s leading manufacturer of homogenizers Manton Gaulin USA acquired the Lübeck-based company.
• The company relocated to Denmark at the end of the 1990’s. Former employees of APV-Gaulin subsequently founded HST (HST = Homogenizer Service Technology) on the outskirts of Lübeck.

Engineering development and enhancement of the homogenizers has been ongoing for nearly 17 years. Production takes place in Dassow. In response to increased demand, the company has constructed a new office building and new production facilities.

See all of our UK Agency brands here

Turnkey stainless steel tanks for dairy, food and chemical process solutions

Specially designed plant in various diameters for customers requiring bespoke solutions.

We are pleased to announce we are now authorised distributors of Endülüs Krom stainless steel tanks.

Famous throughout the world for the manufacturing of high-quality food and dairy tanks.

Applications for stainlees steel tanks include:

• Storage
• Mixer
• Insulated
• Heating/cooling
• Filtrations
• On vehicle
• Turnkey food
• Chemical
• Automotive

See all of our UK Agency brands here

Who says you can’t make the best quality ice cream in the country using a continuous freezer? Certainly not David Equi, of Equi’s Ice Cream, who has claimed both the company’s 3rd National Ice Cream Champion of Champions award and the Best of Vanilla award at the 2020 ICA National Ice Cream Competition – for product made on his ROKK RFE600 continuous freezer.

David, who bought his ROKK five years ago, is also the current reigning champion of the Scottish awards, and puts the success of their family-run business down to passion and a refusal to compromise – on anything:

“The first thing I was taught to do was to make ice cream and my ambition was always to win awards,” says David.  

“Equi’s was started by my great grandfather, Pietro, in 1914, through home-sickness for the great ice cream of Italy and we have carried his legacy through the generations.  We treasure all of the awards we have received over the years, but these are the ultimate accolade, as they are judged by experts and our peers.

“At Equi’s, we are always trying to make things better. We source only the best ingredients for our ice cream, made using the best equipment, that’s supported by a really strong service and maintenance programme.  

“Whilst we do use batch machines as well, I find I get the highest possible quality product with my ROKK continuous freezer because it freezes instantly and produces consistently smooth ice cream throughout the run.

“Setting the machine up right is the most critical first step and the ROKK is both sophisticated enough to allow me to adjust it to my specific needs, but also not overly complicated.  When you combine this with the high level of expertise and customer service provided by Machinery World, it leaves me free to concentrate on the all-important sourcing and combining of the finest ingredients.”

David is joined on the winner’s rostrum by Luciano Di Meo of Di Meo’s Ice Cream, Whitley Bay, also a family-run business, and now in their fifth generation of supplying locals with the best Gelato and Pizzas in the area.  Luciano won the Best Flavour Award for his delicious Pistachio Crunch, which was made using his Cattabriga Multifreeze Pro 18, bought from Machinery World just last year.

Following a fact finding trip to the Cattabriga factory in Bologna in 2017, and an introduction to the Cattabriga Multifreeze Pro 18 at the Longarone ice cream show in Italy the following year, Luciano and his father were later introduced to the UK agents for Cattabriga, Machinery World, at the Harrogate Expo in 2019 – and bought their new machine on the spot. 

“When in Italy we were impressed with the passion and expertise of the senior technicians at the factory – and all this know-how and enthusiasm has been poured into the machine design,” says Luciano.  “It is built by – and for – ice cream perfectionists: it is so flexible, producing batches from 3 litres to 18 litres, is belt driven, which is essential in my view, and has a metal blade option, for superior mixing.  I can also design my own programmes, which means I have full control of how each and every batch feels and tastes.”

It is this hands-on and passionate approach which has not only won the Di Meo family their latest in a long list of awards, but also given them confidence in the after sales support offered by Machinery World’s technicians:

“The Machinery World team know I like getting my hands dirty,” says Luciano, “so it’s reassuring to know that if I should ever need to fix the machine, they can offer advice over the phone and source most parts immediately, which will reduce both costs and downtime.”  

The service, sales and support teams at Machinery World, another family-run business, are delighted with the competition results:

“We would like to offer our sincere congratulations to not only David and Luciano for their tremendous accolades, but also to the many other Machinery World customers who made it onto this year’s honours list,” says Paul Crowter, Managing Director of Machinery World. 

“We are immensely proud to have supplied both the machines and on-going servicing support to the country’s official top ice cream producers.  We look forward to continuing to support them and our many other customers – and who knows, maybe next year will be another clean sweep for Machinery World clients!”

READ THE FULL ICA ARTICLE HERE