BeanScene Magazine

Current AASCA President, Bill Comely. once compared specialty coffee to the Formula 1: “Even if everyone can’t all drive a race car, we all have better brakes for it.”

It’s a fitting comparison that comes to mind as I sit down with David Downing of Franke Coffee Systems, the originators and major world-wide suppliers of bean-to-cup automatic machines. Even though your most serious barista may never approach an automatic coffee machine, this community plays a significant role in their growing popularity and development.

As  baristas continue to improve the quality of the nation’s coffee one year to the next, Australians are becoming increasingly discerning and even passionate, when it comes to their coffee consumption. As David puts it: “Coffee is such a personal product, you can’t get away from it. As frustrated as one may get during the day at work, what really makes people’s blood boil is getting the right cappuccino. There’s no other product on the market that attracts that kind of passion.” 

It is this passion that is continuing to drive the general public away from instant and towards quality espresso-based coffees. Office workers are taking the time to walk that extra block from the office to get a good cup of coffee.

What is a move forward for the espresso coffee enthusiast however, can turn into somewhat of a burden for employers, explains David, as they watch their employees spend time outside of their scheduled breaks to escape for a cup of coffee.

“In large office blocks, you’ll almost always see someone on their way downstairs to get a coffee,” says David. “Some employees are spending half an hour a day getting coffee and that’s in addition to their lunch breaks. That’s a loss of revenue for that business.”

David compares the employers’ coffee conundrum to that of employing smokers. While employers are genuinely concerned for the health of their employees, encouraging smokers to quit is also a way to encourage them to spend more time in their office chairs rather than puffing away on the pavement.

So, what’s the solution when it comes to coffee? Doubting we’ll ever see campaigns encouraging workers to kick their caffeine habits (and BeanScene certainly hopes that day will never come), this is where top of the line automatic coffee machines come in. Installed in office workspaces, these machines allow workers their favourite espresso-based coffee at the touch of a button. Continuous technological advances by Franke CS means that these machines are able to produce consistently good quality coffee, without the need for workers to hit the pavement.

A good cup of coffee from an automatic machine was a difficult concept for most to grasp as early as a few years ago. The days of powdered milk and instant coffee from coin operated bus stations may have scared a few people away, however those days are long gone. These days, Franke’s bean-to-cup solutions offer fresh coffee that’s accurately ground, dosed and tampered for every cup.

Foam master technology works with fresh milk and on some models the choice of two types of milk, in a revolutionary technique that mixes the air with the milk to manipulate the texture. David just stops himself from saying it’s barista-quality milk, “but it’s as close as you can get to barista style”. The system also provides similar thick, creamy, cold flavoured milk.

The flavours come from optional syrups, but the machine can also make quality hot chocolate from powder. With the Pura system, a new technology mixes the hot chocolate with no moving parts, producing a consistent product with minimal wear and tear, reducing the machine’s upkeep costs and overhead.  

These technologies have certainly come a long way, inspired by the ever improving Australian coffee scene. While David admits they’ll never be able to match the impressive skills of a top barista, he points out it just simply isn’t practical to put a barista in every office, or expect your employees to run a traditional espresso machine.

“ I just don’t think it’s realistic, especially from an occupational health and safety aspect,” says David. “Imagine employees fiddling with grinders, with steam. You’re looking at a mess, and then you’re looking again at a decrease in productivity.”

Even for home use, David notes that automatic machines are growing in popularity as people become more aware of the efficiency of them. For this, he credits McDonald’s with introducing automatic machines in their McCafés and thus  dispelling the myth that automatic machine coffees are terrible.

“When they first came out, you heard everyone groan about how this take-away coffee was going to be terrible. They’ve really proven everyone wrong. They’ve been able to offer exceptional coffee from an automatic machine, and automatic machines are part of our life now,” says David. “People shouldn’t fear them. We use automation in everything we do. Maybe we still have a long way to go to reach all the traditional oriented cafés, but we are sure to see the machines everywhere else.”

As an international company, Franke distributes its automated machines all over the world. And, while Australia’s strong coffee-culture holds its challenges for Franke CS in the café market, something David says he’s glad to accept, it’s a different story in Europe. In Germany, for instance, David notes that a number of cafés are happy to rely on automated systems to ensure consistently good coffee. While a good barista can be trusted for a quality coffee, many venues are prepared to accept that they won’t always be able to train their staff accordingly and would prefer to put their faith in technology.

“If you take the machines out of the equation, the person is always the weakest link,” David says. “If you put someone behind a traditional espresso machine who isn’t passionate about their work, then you get a bad coffee. With an automated machine, all you need to do is set it up right and you’ll consistently get a good cup.”

Franke’s machines have been in the Australian market for the last 10 years and in that time the company has learned a few things about fitting out offices. One lesson they’ve learned is the importance of technical support and for this they’ve recently appointed Peter Viler as Oceania Technical Manager. When it comes to their corporate customers, finding out why they are looking at getting a machine is the first step in choosing a solution for them. David notes that  limiting coffee break time is one of the more popular reasons to install one. More than that, however, installing a machine is also about creating a positive workplace environment where employees feel they are taken care of.

“We really need to ask specific questions from our corporate clients about why they want an automatic solution,” he says. “It’s really about digging deep to find out what they want. I hate giving someone a piece of equipment that’s not what they were looking for. We’re not in the business of selling people machines to merely generate turnover, and then at the end of the day they’re not happy.”

It’s this kind of approach that has kept Franke in business for so long, as the company celebrates its 100-year anniversary. They’re celebrating by partnering up with UNICEF, and throughout the year will engage in various events around the world as well as provide monetary support and donate coffee machines at various locations.

As for what we can expect from Franke Coffee Systems in the future, David kept quiet about immediate innovations. In the long term, however, David notes the machines have come to such a point he can hardly imagine how they might improve the quality of the coffee. He says the innovation will come in the interaction with the customer.

“We are getting to the point that there isn’t much more you can add to the machines.”