SUSTAINABLE ROASTING
The Roastaire - note how little space it requires. Compact size, energy efficiency and virtually no emissions are only a few of the benefits.
Roasting emissions is a big issue in a growing number of cities & towns. A quick Google search will turn up many instances of odour complaints and enforcement measures involving coffee roasters. The presence of toxins in the smoke given off by traditional coffee drum roasters is a significant barrier for coffee roasters operating in populated areas. Even with the use of an afterburner, significant airborne particulates (allergens), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and greenhouse gases such as carbon, methane and nitrous oxide are released into the atmosphere – sometimes resulting in complaints from neighbours, and even bylaw enforcement.
Roastaire’s almost zero-emissions technology and tremendous energy savings make it the most environmentally sustainable coffee roaster in Canada. In terms of the difference in CO2 emissions, a Roastaire™ running at full capacity produces less overall emissions annually than one vehicle. This is in stark contrast to a comparably-sized traditional gas-fired roaster, which emits the equivalent of 19 vehicles worth of emissions. The Roastaire also allows the user to roast coffee in places never before possible, because of emissions advancements and the space saving compact design.
how it works
Small footprint air roaster requiring no afterburner, no gas lines and no complicated, lengthy training to operate.
The Roastaire is a patented, 3.3 kg batch micro-roaster that produces 30 lbs. of freshly roasted beans per hour and allows for precisely-controlled artisan roasting with almost no emissions.
Roastaire’s small-footprint design and clean-air technology allows the user to roast coffee in places never before possible. Much like the traditional drum style roaster, the Roastaire is designed for artisan small-batch retail coffee roasting. Roastaire technology hybridizes the best characteristics of drum roasting together with the modern advantages of fluidized bed roasting technology (air roasting) which suspends the roasting beans in an evenly heated jacket of hot air, ensuring they roast evenly without burning. Roastaire’s SMRT© roast control technology allows the Roastmaster precise control batch after batch as it accurately measures the progress of the roasting cycle in real time. The advanced ‘closed-loop’ method of roasting reclaims the heat used in the roasting process, creating a substantial energy savings in addition to the unique roasting profile it produces.
During the roasting process, beans become ‘exothermic’ when they begin to give off heat instead of absorbing heat. This is the point that roasters refer to as ‘Pyrolysis’, and it is key to developing perfect carmelization in coffee beans. The ability to consistently interrupt the roasting process at the precise moment during pyrolylis is crucial to what defines a great roast and ultimately every Roastmaster. The Roastaire manages thermal overshoot better than any other commercial roaster on the market today, stopping the exothermic process inside of 25 seconds.
Roastaire’s emission control system is closed to the environment for 85% of the roasting process. Before any air leaves the roaster, an internal air scrubbing process captures approximately 80% of airborne particulates & emissions through a patented internal emission management process, preventing escape into the air. Our mission is to provide you with: Clean Air Artisan Coffee Roasting technology.
better coffee
Better Roastmaster control ensures ultimate flavour & freshness
Developed to provide Roastery Cafes with the ability to precision-roast, to exact specifications and levels of control, Roastaire’s unique clean-air roasting technology, produces the freshest tasting, artisan-roast coffee available.
Roastaire captures the same aromatic nuances as a drum roaster, but with the controlled, even heating that only a fluidized-bed air roaster can provide. The patented SMRT™ Roastaire roasting method allows for perfect bean carmelization – making for a clean, full flavored profile, with no burnt or bitter after tastes.
Roastaire’s SMRT™ roasting process is also fully customizable and adjustable to the roastmaster’s preferences. It can be customized to capture specific profiles of different varieties of coffee beans, therefore developing the richest tastes. The real time activity that the SMRT™ control software monitors the activity of the roast so the Roastmaster can make precise decisions as they roast.
Another key attribute that makes the Roastaire unique is consistency. The SMRT™ roasting technology removes common roasting variables such as weather, humidity, season etc. With Roastaire, a specific roast can be easily duplicated, batch after batch… thus focusing on the end-result at all times.
energy savings
The Roastaire™ consumes only 24,000 BTU’s per hr., in comparison with the same size gas roaster/afterburner combination which consumes a whopping 496,000 BTU’s for the same 30 lbs. of coffee ! This makes Roastaire™ 20 times more energy efficient’ than the same size gas roaster & afterburner!
It takes 800 BTU’s to generate one pound of coffee using the Roastaire™ in comparison to the 16,533 BTU’s used to generate one pound of coffee using equivalent drum roasting technology with an afterburner
Over the course of one year’s roasting on a sample-size of 30,000 lbs. of coffee, this translates in to the energy savings equivalent to that consumed by 8 single family homes
Based on 30,000 lbs of coffee/year and despite gas being at historic lows, the cost-savings from using an electric Roastaire over a gas-fired roaster is approximately $4200 annually
