Energy Savings Raising the Bar in Wafer Production

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Bühler Group has launched Optibake, the world’s first inductively heated wafer oven. The solution boasts of improving quality, operational flexibility, efficiency and is also capable of slashing energy consumption by 50 % as compared to conventional gas-fired wafer baking ovens.

The solution, tailored for flat and hollow wafers, sets a new standard for the global wafer industry, supporting customers in achieving operational excellence and sustainability in production, shares the company.

With Optibake, the firm has set out to deliver more than just a new wafer oven. The company has challenged itself to combine exceptional wafer quality with unprecedented flexibility, while enabling customers to contribute to sustainability, mentions the firm. The company’s electric induction heating technology responds to the global demand for higher quality and efficiency, reduced operational costs, and a significantly lower carbon footprint, adds the firm.

For more than a decade, Bühler’s wafer segment has focused on developing technologies that support customer growth while reducing the environmental footprint of production. Optibake offers a range of unique advantages that set it apart from conventional gas-fired or electric wafer ovens. While conventional electric heating has been used for decades, inductive heating offers greater energy efficiency and new possibilities for precise control.

Optibake’s induction heating system uses electromagnetic fields to generate heat directly within the baking plates, dispensing with open flames and combustion. The result is a process that produces no direct emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), or nitrogen oxides (NOx). Energy consumption can fall to 50 %, when compared to gas-fired or electrical wafer ovens, reducing the environmental impact. These emission reductions can also lead to tax and licensing advantages, along with increased subsidy opportunities, shares the company.

The environmental benefits of the oven are even greater when powered by a low-carbon electricity mix. In such settings, it can significantly reduce CO₂ emissions and support broader sustainability goals. By eliminating reliance on natural gas, the system also contributes to energy security and supply resilience, opines the firm.

Enhanced quality and efficiency

At the heart of the oven’s performance is a newly engineered baking plate design, specifically developed to produce the highest wafer sheet quality in combination with the inductive heating system. Paired with an innovative system for individual plate temperature control, it ensures precise and consistent heat distribution throughout the baking process. The ability to fine-tune temperatures plate by plate not only improves product quality but also allows for exceptional flexibility and responsiveness – key for handling recipe changes or varying production demands. In fact, induction heating provides the ideal foundation for precise process control, enabling the system to respond quickly and efficiently to varying production requirements, ensuring consistent product quality and optimized energy use, shares the company.

The low baking chamber temperatures reduce life-cycle costs by minimizing thermal stress on components such as cables and bearings. Optibake also creates a quieter production environment by eliminating burner nozzle flow noise and simplifies heat recuperation due to the absence of combustion products. Furthermore, the new oven allows for 100 % raw material utilization, as baking scraps do not burn and can be repurposed. Its operation is safe with no fire hazard as there are no open flames in the baking chamber. The system is also designed to operate without posing any electromagnetic compatibility (EMV) risks, ensuring safe and interference-free integration into industrial environments.

With rising CO2 taxes, volatile energy prices, and changing consumer demands, companies must act now to stay ahead, states the company. Optibake represents a milestone in industrial baking technology, delivering increased quality, efficiency, and flexibility. This powerful combination equips customers to thrive today and remain competitive in the years to come, mentions the firm.

Innovation award in hand

Just launched, the new oven is quickly earning accolades for its groundbreaking innovation. Optibake has been awarded the Lower Austrian Innovation Award 2025. Out of approximately 80 submissions and nearly 30 projects selected in the final phase, Bühler’s Optibake stood out and emerged as the overall winner, receiving the Karl Ritter von Ghega Prize.

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