New environmentally friendly combi technology

13th February 2009, 12:33pm

Rational, the manufacturer of the SelfCooking Center®, the world's most popular advanced combi oven, has won the 'Kitchen Equipment Product of the Show' award at Catex 2009, the Irish national catering exhibition.

In announcing the award at the show on February 9th, the judges particularly praised the environmental and energy-saving aspects of 'CareControl', the new technology in the latest SelfCooking Center. Paul Anderson, sales director of Rational UK, was presented with the Catex award from Ireland's Minister of Food and Agriculture, Brendan Smith, TD.

"We are delighted to get this accolade, which recognises what caterers have told us were their priorities," said Paul Anderson. "In previous years Rational has focused on making the SelfCooking Center the world's best and most versatile cooking device. Now we've worked on new ways of making it still more environmentally friendly too."

CareControl is a 'world first' in combi oven technology. It helps to lower energy consumption by preventing scale buildup, reducing maintenance costs, and making daily cleaning easier and more biodegradable to ensure compliance with local waste water restrictions.

The SelfCooking Center now never needs descaling which not only reduces energy costs but also enhances operational reliability. It also creates more space in the kitchen by eliminating the need for a dedicated water softener for the combi.

The CareControl technology starts by keeping track of which cooking programs have run and when, and alerts the chef when cleaning is required. For example, if the machine has been used for steaming vegetables, less cleaning is needed than if it has been roasting meats. By eliminating unnecessary cleaning, less water, chemicals and energy are used.

When cleaning is due the operator simply places the new type of biodegradable tablets ('Care Tabs') into the unit's drawer, puts cleaning tablets into the special basket in the cooking cabinet and presses the button for a fully automatic cleaning cycle that can run when the chef goes off-duty. "It leaves the unit 'showroom clean'," says Paul Anderson.

And Rational says that the combination of reduced energy consumption, servicing, staff time and lower running costs is going to save each kitchen hundreds of euros (or pounds) per year and reduce their carbon footprint significantly.

For information and brochures, or to arrange to come to a free SelfCooking Center® 'TeamCooking Live' seminar, contact your dealer or call Rational on 01582 480388 (from the UK) and 01 678 7069 (from Ireland). For product information and contact details see www.rational-UK.com