Customer experience
Customer Story: Peka Kroef
Customer Story: Peka Kroef
Boosting mixing quality on a third production line at Peka Kroef
Peka Kroef is a 100 percent family-owned company that has specialized in fresh, chilled potato products since 1970. Over the past 50 years, the company has grown into a leading manufacturer of chilled potato products for foodservice companies, retail and the consumer market. From raw potatoes as they come from the field to ready-to-cook slices, cubes and baby potatoes, Peka Kroef manages the complete process with a strong focus on customer requirements.
At the Venray site, market demand created the need to add a third seasoning line next to two existing mixers. After a market scan, Peka Kroef chose Dinnissen for a custom-built mixer solution that fits the required capacity, improves mixing quality, supports hygiene and food safety requirements, and makes manual filling ergonomically workable. The new installation is now in daily operation and is running reliably in production.
In this customer story with Peka Kroef, you will read:
- How Peka Kroef added a third seasoning line with a custom mixer that matches their capacity and layout
- How hygienic design and pre-delivery product testing helped Peka Kroef start up the line with confidence
- How close cooperation supported the engineering and realization of the new mixing line
"The Pegasus uses an upward mixing movement that was new for us. In practice, it delivers very good mixing results."
Grard Nooijen, Project Manager Engineering at Peka Kroef
Dinnissen’s solution in Peka Kroef’s existing production line
Peka Kroef produces convenience potato products, from raw potatoes to packaged end products that consumers prepare at home. “We go from the raw potato as it comes from the field to what you buy in a tray, bag or pack in the supermarket,” says Grard Nooijen, Project Manager Engineering at Peka Kroef. “That includes sorting, cleaning, peeling, pre-cooking, cutting, seasoning and packing.”
At this location, Peka Kroef operates multiple production lines. Two lines already had seasoning mixers in place. When the market asked for additional volume and variety, Peka Kroef decided to equip a third line with a mixer as well. “We already had two mixers, but we needed a third line with mixing capacity,” Nooijen explains. “We went back to the market to find a solution that matched our capacity and quality requirements.”
Based on that requirement, Dinnissen developed a proposal that addressed all requirements. “The desired capacity for the mixers has grown in time.,” says Nooijen. “We shared our normal volumes and Dinnissen proposed a mixer size that fits our capacity.” In addition to scaling the mixer correctly, the solution was engineered to fit the available space and surrounding equipment. Dinnissen measured the location and delivered a 3D layout to validate how the installation would be positioned in the line.
From raw potato to seasoned end product
Peka Kroef’s process starts with cleaning the raw potatoes to remove contaminants such as sand, glass, stones and metal. Then the potatoes are peeled and pre-cooked with steam, after which they are cut into the required format, such as slices or baby potatoes. For seasoned products, the cut potatoes go into the mixer together with seasoning. After mixing, the product goes directly into packaging and is shipped to customers.
The Dinnissen installation is designed for this seasoning step and is based on the Pegasus mixer. This mixer uses an upward mixing movement, which was a new mixing principle for Peka Kroef. “The Pegasus uses an upward mixing movement that was new for us,” Nooijen says. “In practice, it delivers very good mixing results.” In daily operation, the effect is clearly visible in how the product moves through the mixer. According to Peka Kroef, the solution provides a consistent distribution of seasoning across different product types and keeps the product well contained within the mixing tray.
The mixer and its surrounding construction were designed as a custom solution for Peka Kroef. “It is a made-to-measure solution,” says Nooijen. “We worked through our own design and Dinnissen developed it into a solution that fits our situation.”
"Our role is to make sure that what is discussed commercially is translated correctly into the technical solution. By staying closely involved, we can respond quickly and keep the process clear for the customer."
Erwin Vogelsangs, account manager at Dinnissen
Built for capacity, cleanability and operator comfort
Ergonomics were a key design requirement because the line is operated with manual feeding. The mixer unit can move down to a filling height that matches the operator’s working level. “If we would place the mixer directly at the hopper without moving parts, we would have to lift crates about a meter higher,” Nooijen explains. “Due to the required manual labour, ergonomics must be right.”
The practical batch and cycle figures are operator-dependent, but Peka Kroef provided indicative values from daily use. The bunker holds 8 crates per batch, which is about 200 kg. The mixing, discharge and return cycle takes about 2 to 3 minutes. “In practice you can do around 12 rounds per hour, depending on how the operator runs the machine,” Nooijen says.
Food safety and hygienic design were part of the engineering from the start. “That means we validate first, and only when it is certainly good, it goes to market.” On the Dinnissen project, hygienic design aligned well with Peka Kroef’s expectations. “Dinnissen’s hygienic design approach matched what we needed, so we did not have to add many extra requirements,” says Nooijen. “It went quite naturally, with only small suggestions here and there.”
Consistent mixing quality in daily production
The main improvement in the new setup is the quality and consistency of the mixing process. “The difference is mainly in the quality of the mixing,” Nooijen says. The upward mixing principle delivers an impressively uniform distribution of seasoning across different product types and supports stable process control in daily operation.
The mixer has proven to perform reliably in continuous production. “It is a very reliable machine that does what it needs to do,” says Nooijen. In practice, the installation integrates smoothly into the existing line and supports Peka Kroef’s quality standards.
Pre delivery product testing played an important role in the start-up phase. Because test time on the production line itself was limited, testing was carried out at the supplier using real product. “That was an exception, but it helped,” Nooijen says. “We found a few small things that were not visible at first, and those improvements made a difference before the machine arrived here.”
"The cooperation went well and the solution performs as expected, which is why we chose Dinnissen again for the next mixing line."
Grard Nooijen, Project Manager Engineering at Peka Kroef
Short lines and practical cooperation
Peka Kroef describes the cooperation with Dinnissen as pragmatic, with short communication lines. “The Project Engineer we worked with, Robert van Rens, had frequent direct contact with us,” says Nooijen. “A quick call here, a quick call there. That works well for this type of project. You do not need a weekly meeting with heavy progress reporting if you can keep it practical and flexible.”
In addition to the engineering support, Account Manager Erwin Vogelsangs was closely involved throughout the project. He acted as a fixed point of contact between Peka Kroef and the Dinnissen organization. “Our role is to make sure that what is discussed commercially is translated correctly into the technical solution,” says Vogelsangs. “By staying closely involved, we can respond quickly and keep the process clear for the customer.”
For Peka Kroef, the differentiators were not limited to the machine itself. “They do not stop at delivering the mixer,” Nooijen explains. “They also engineered the construction around it and worked toward a solution that fits our line. The approach felt professional.”
Based on the positive experience with this installation, Peka Kroef has chosen Dinnissen again. A mixer has now been ordered for the next mixing line, underscoring the cooperation between the two companies. “The cooperation went well and the solution performs as expected. That is why we chose Dinnissen again for the next mixing line,” says Nooijen.
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