57 
THURSDAY, MARCH 26ru. 
me VISIT .TO:.GOLDSTONE. BAKERIES. 
By the kind invitation of Mr. J. J, Clark, Alderman and 
J.P. of Hove, the Goldstone Bakeries, Fonthill-road, Hove, 
were visited to examine the new system of automatic bread- 
making, by which the whole of the operations from start to 
finish are carried out by machinery. Alderman Clark conducted 
the party, and explained the successive stages in the process, as 
follows :—(1) The sifting of the flour and the kneading of the 
dough by machinery ; (2) the cutting of the dough by an 
ingeniously designed ‘‘ dough divider” into equal pieces of the 
exact size for making two-pound loaves, the pieces being then 
passed on to a shaping and moulding machine ; (3) the automatic 
conveyance of the shaped pieces to the “proving cupboard ” 
which contains trays travelling slowly through it, the temperature 
encouraging the function of the yeast in producing a light loaf; 
(4) the automatic passage of the ‘“ proved” dough from the 
“proving cupboard” to the second moulding machine where the 
dough is finally shaped and moulded ready for baking; and 
finally (5) the cooking of the bread in the steam-pipe ovens fired 
by fuel gas. The “handing up” and moulding plant is an 
ingenious machine effecting a result which is the equivalent of 
hand moulding. The dough is introduced between a trough and 
a revolving table at a point on its outer periphery. The table is 
sharply “ coned” and imparts just as much or as little “ working ” 
as may be required by the dough to be treated. The automatic 
‘‘ proving” apparatus is equally ingenious, and consists of an 
inclosed structure containing swinging trays carried on continuous 
chains. The chains move intermittently, the speed being regulated 
in such a manner as to cause the loaves to remain in the 
“ prover” just so long as is necessary to obtain the exact amount 
of “proof” required. The result is to secure a complete 
uniformity of treatment and a uniformly standard product. 
Finally, the ovens are fired by means of gaseous fuel. ‘Ihe gas 
is taken directly from the furnace to the ovens, where its 
combustion is very simply regulated beneath a row of tubes. 
There is thus neither a boiler nor gas holder employed. The 
entire installation was designed by Messrs. Werner, Pfleiderer and 
Perkins, Limited, bakery engineers, of Peterborough. Not only 
is the bread preserved, as far as it is possible to preserve it, from 
human contamination, but the surroundings in which it 1s 
produced keep clean, wholesome and sanitary. 
Light refreshments were hospitably served during the evening. 
