Advice on - Best Most Reliable Super Automatic Machine

Koffee_Kosmo

A client asked me ?
What is the Best & most reliable super automatic coffee machine
So possibly a commercial sponsor can get in touch with me to pass on details

Will need 2 units for Brisbane branch

Staff - 200

Currently using 2 X Double sided Nespresso machines

KK

mycuppa

Hello KK, As with most things, nothing is really easy or straight forward. Best and most reliable generally equates to big $$$ - think commercial grade like the Supa Autos found in the fast food drive-thrus and larger petrol stations. It's an expensive segment not only in capital but also in ongoing cleaning and maintenance. Convenience comes at a cost. Some of the best brands can also suffer debilitating failures. We lost a lot of money years ago trying to operate in this segment - let down by consistently bad failures/incidents that were incredibly disappointing and frustrating. Perhaps have a look at the Carimali Soft/Soft-Plus - reasonably solid engineering,e .g. rotary pump, stainless boilers, 18 month warranty (very, very important!) and sit around the $9K mark. These types of quality specs are rarely offered in Supa-Autos - instead you tend to find more plastics (even for brewing), alloys and vibe pumps. The Carimali often does not pop up on the radar for reasons I simply can't understand - it's pretty good kit. KK, everyone is going to have a war story about Supa-Autos.......IMHO it's a game of luck and chance and no single brand is immune to the odd lemon.

K_Bean_Coffee

Auto.... can’t help with that one. I would go Googling and see what you can find in the way of reviews. Good luck Paul www.kbean.com.au

Koffee_Kosmo

Thank you for the replies  :thumb: Had a look at the Carimali offerings and they look well made Soft Soft Plus , Mya , Optima & Armonia Touch I will print out the info on those models For this company and at the price range it may be best for them to rent if that option is available KK

Brett H

Absolutely look at renting especially if service is included.  Anyone I know who has operated these bigger commercial SA's has said that without fastidious daily cleaning they're dead in the water!  So.… the people buying must have folks ready and keen to keep up the cleaning/general maintenance of these machines.  I know it sounds less-exciting but would a couple of Pod Machines in each office not be cheaper and more cost-effective?  I know a great roasting company that does the pods: https://www.mycuppa.com.au/Fresh-Roasted-Coffee/?cn=151&rf=cn

Koffee_Kosmo

Thanks for the input Brett They have 2 pod machines installed now Thing that urkes them is the milk canister and I need to clean it as part of my job If they get another machine the cleaning maintenance will fall on me or staff This is the model machine they have now below https://www.nespresso.com/shared_res/mos/free_html/nl/machinelanding/images/mlp_machine_gemini220.png KK

mycuppa

Thanks for the shout-out Brett. KK, I'm afraid Brett is 100% correct. In fact, a Bean to Cup machine (Super-Auto) may require more cleaning and attention compared to a Nespresso machine. There are more components and functional tasks in a super-auto to prepare a beverage. Sometimes, incidents occur from people fiddling with settings trying to get the machine to make a coffee "their way" - of course, modern systems can lock out fiddlers, but it doesn't stop them trying. Whenever milk is involved, it's a problem waiting to happen and you won't have to wait long - as you know, milk and heat don't go together without some form of immediate cleansing. SuperAutos are getting more intelligent with their dispensing and cleaning cycles to automate much of the task, but it's still a disciplined activity that someone needs to perform. Tablets for detergents (weekly, or depending upon usage), powder/liquids for de-scaling (monthly or whenever it asks) and daily milk system sanitation. The Achilles heel of any SuperAuto is the grind, dose and tamp mechanisms. These need to be properly cleaned periodically - sometimes it's not always an easy or simple task for a user because of the way the components are internal within the system. Having said all that - if the system is cleaned and setup properly, the resultant beverages can be remarkably delicious - far superior to Crapsules.

Koffee_Kosmo

Yes I actually agree with both of you They will probably go for a better capsule machine but with a better milk dispenser system - something like a seperate milk fridge system The current central canister arrangement can and often has milk spoil Any recommendations on that style of machine ? KK

Brett H

I saw on Thursday Island a La Piccola Cecilia (only remembered it because there was a tiny young lass named Cecilia in the Orchestra) and the brew was good as was the look and operation of the machine.  Apart from that I know nosthink. Edit.... Ooo Yeah, Owner said it was a hassle free machine and they'd had used it in a busy shop.

Koffee_Kosmo

Update At this point the company is looking at the Carimali machines as a short list Then they will ask a rep to visit KK

LeroyC

on 1530593500:

Update At this point the company is looking at the Carimali machines as a short list Then they will ask a rep to visit KK

KK unless they are really committed to having a group of staff assigned to daily cleaning I would highly recommend they look at a lease/rent option with servicing and cleaning in the contract. There are many companies that can offer quite a big range of machines and service levels depending on their budget and needs. Even Coke have a subsidiary that sells this type of offer. My Mum actually works for CF Direct who are in this business. They’re at the pointy end of the market and only use Franke equipment (in the $15-30k range) so they might be too expensive for your client. It’s this sort of service that I’d suggest they look at though.

Koffee_Kosmo

Thanks for the input I will pass on the info Not sure if they have had sales reps out to see them KK