How not to design a commercial kitchen - Technical drawings and the reality

How not to design a commercial kitchen - Technical drawings and the reality

06/05/2021


The key to a practical and well-organized kitchen is the kitchen technology plan and the exhibition plan based on it, including electrical and mechanical connection points. Our company has the right knowledge and decades of experience in the design and construction of kitchens, so we will prepare the most optimal plan for you, so that your kitchen can operate as efficiently as possible.

Technical drawing of a commercial kitchen

The basis for the organized and usable kitchen technology equipment is the well-designed electrical and mechanical connection points.

Once the technical plans have been prepared, we are in constant consultation with the representatives of the specalists and check the presence, position and type of connection points during on-site visits. There was a case where the customer also entrusted the necessary stands for the kitchen technology equipment to the mechanical and electrical specialists without consulting with our company. In many cases, the design of the connection points on our plan was treated very inaccurately and the reality is significantly different from the blueprint.

 

 

In 2019, we installed a new kitchen at one of the sites of a large manufacturing company and on our first site visit we saw that the electrical and mechanical stands had already been set up without consulting us. The disabling switches were placed above the electric machines, which is dangerous, there was no soft water connection for the cooking pot, without which the machine can be damaged, the floor protrusions of the bain-maries did not fall under the appliance, the connection drain to the  dishwasher (gravity drain) was too high , so the water would not have drained from the dishwasher, there was no electrical protrusion for the lighting of the extractor hood and several mechanical connection points were not in the right place.

Commercial kitchen outlets


 

 

 

Of course, we discussed with the customer which outlets we could manage the connection to, but unfortunately in most cases it was necessary to modify the outlets.

We have prepared a new electrical and mechanical plan for the customer, taking into account the completed connection points, so that the smallest possible modifications would be made. But unfortunately, the customer still had to make the modifications at great expense, which could easily have been avoided if he had not entrusted this to electricians and mechanics and had not started setting up the stands before consulting with the experts of Agrikon-Alfa Kft. As soon as we received the order for the project, we immediately held a site tour, but by that time the stands and outlets had already been set up. This resulted in extra work and cost not only for the customer but also for our company.

Kiállások nagykonyhai környezetben

Of course, in the case of such problems, we examine what is the most cost-effective solution for the customer. In some cases, modifying the stands is not the best solution in terms of cost and deadline:

  • the outlet is not in the requested location, but can be solved with another type of connection;
  • in the case of an omitted soft water outlet, it is cheaper to purchase a water softener than to rebuild the outlet to the desired location;
  • purchase a dishwasher drain pump instead of changing the duct outlet;
  • modification of the design of the equipment during production instead of modifying the outlets, if possible.

Since most of the equipment is manufactured by Agrikon-Alfa Kft., we have immediate information about the production schedule and the possibilities of modification: stopping the design or production of equipment and proposing modification regarding time and cost.

In the event of inadequate design of electrical and mechanical stands, Agrikon-Alfa Kft. will make solution proposals, taking into account that the modifications do not affect accident prevention, kitchen usability or official regulations.


The most cost-effective way is always to consult in time with the experts of Agrikon-Alfa Kft. who are also experienced in design, production and implementation in connection with electrical and mechanical stands!


In 2020, we received an order from the same customer for a 1,200-serving kitchen and, learning from the previous project, they also asked for our expertise in electrical and mechanical stands from the very beginning. Already in the first step of the investment, we prepared the blueprints containing the outlets, sent them to the customer and agreed with the representatives of the specialists.

We also continuously coordinated and inspected the stands on site, resulting in the right type of connection points and floor drains being designed at the desired location and time, saving the customer cost, time and labor. Thanks to this, our specialists connected and operated the equipment easily and quickly, so we handed over a perfectly usable kitchen to the customer.