Did you know over 70% of coffee and tea extraction efficiency depends on particle size? In a market where flavour and consistency define product success, manufacturers can’t afford to get this step wrong. Achieving a premium end product starts with precise size reduction of your raw ingredients, ensuring optimal surface area for flavour capture. When particle size is inconsistent, extraction efficiency suffers — leading to wasted product, undesirable bitterness, or weak flavour profiles.
For processors using integrated extraction systems, controlling the particle size of roasted coffee beans and tea leaves is critical. Too coarse, and valuable flavour compounds may not fully extract. Too fine, and over-extraction can cause excess bitterness. Achieving the perfect balance requires advanced technology — this is where Urschel’s Comitrol® processors make all the difference.
Importance of Particle Size in Extraction
In modern coffee and tea processing, ingredients are mixed with water to create a slurry, essential in producing coffee essences, instant coffee, and tea concentrates. The efficiency of flavour extraction is directly linked to precise size reduction. Oversized or inconsistent particles result in uneven extraction, reducing yield and overall quality.
• Maximised flavour capture – More surface area exposure enhances aroma retention
• Higher yield efficiency – Improved extraction of soluble coffee or tea compounds
• Process consistency – Ensures uniformity across production batches
Comitrol M3600S – Uniform particle size for optimal extraction.
The Comitrol M3600S is a leading solution for grinding roasted coffee beans and tea leaves. Its precision size reduction ensures uniform particles, optimising slurry preparation and preventing inconsistencies that lead to flavour degradation. This translates to a better-quality final product — whether for ready-to-drink (RTD) coffee extracts or premium instant tea concentrates.
Comitrol M1700 - Versatility for Instant Coffee & Tea
For manufacturers needing greater flexibility, the Comitrol M1700 offers multiple cutting options in a single machine. It allows finetuning of particle size for:
• Finely milled coffee or tea powders for instant extraction
• Micro-cut tea leaves for enhanced flavour infusion
• Pre-ground coffee for instant formulations with consistent texture
Precision cutting heads ensure every batch meets exact specifications, reducing waste and improving efficiency.
Enhancing Efficiency & Quality in Coffee & Tea Processing
Beyond optimising flavour, the Comitrol series from Urschel delivers key operational benefits:
• High throughput – Handles large volumes with minimal operator intervention
• Low maintenance – Durable stainlesssteel construction for easy cleaning and longevity
For coffee and tea manufacturers aiming to maximise flavour retention, optimise extraction, and enhance product consistency, investing in precision size reduction technology is essential. Comitrol M3600S and M1700 ensure superior results in every batch, helping you produce higher-quality extracts, increase efficiency, and deliver premium coffee and tea products to a global market.
Versatile Cutting Solutions with the DiversaCut
Maximise valuable production floor space by combining multiple product-cutting actions in one versatile machine. The DiversaCut 2100A® Dicer produces dices, strips, slices, granulates, and shreds at high production capacities. Widely recognised throughout industry as an excellent choice for size reduction of fruit and vegetables, bakery ingredients, dairy products, meat, poultry, seafood, pet food and meat-alternative products.
IDEAL APPLICATIONS
FLAT & CRINKLE SLICE
Potato Chips and vegetables
DICES/CRUMBLES/STRIPS
Less Waste, More Profit
The generous product input size of up to 10inches (254mm) saves time by eliminating the need to precut large-format products. A variety of slices from 1.6mm to 25mm are achieved simply by turning the slice adjustment knob. Additional options for dicing of 3.2mm to 25mm can be added. Simple adjustment of collars on circular and crosscut spindles provides fine-tuning for ultimate precision.
The DiversaCut 2100A features streamlined stainless steel construction and hinge access panels to promote easy sanitation and maintenance. The compact cutting zone, separate from the mechanical zone, is designed for hygiene.
The DiversaCut offers exceptional versatility through its innovative knife configurations. The process begins with centrifugal force, which holds the product firmly against the drum surface while paddles transport it past
the slicing knife. For enhanced size reduction, optional circular knives and crosscut spindles can be integrated. As slices exit the rotating drum, they can pass through an optional circular knife spindle that cuts them into uniform strips. Further refinement is possible with the addition of a crosscut spindle, allowing the DiversaCut 2100A to uniformly dice products into various sizes, from 3.2mm to 25mm, in both square and rectangular shapes.
For those seeking specialised cuts, the equipment can also accommodate crinkle cut slicing and dicing by substituting for crinkle slicing knives and crinkle crosscut knives.
Choose from three models, the standard DiversaCut 2100A and conveyor discharge model, both with 10”(254mm) diameter input capacity or the larger product input machine that accepts products as large as 14” (356mm) in diameter.
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SHREDS
Chicken, Cheese
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Slice Adjustment Knob
Impeller Paddle
Slicing Knife
Circular Knives
Crosscut Knives
Comitrol® M3600S
Comitrol® M1700
DiversaCut 2100A®
Shaping the future of dairy processing
Cutting solutions for Dairy products
Cheese characteristics vary widely in terms of fat, moisture content, hardness, and more. Urschel’s Affinity® dicing range offers dairy processors high performance dicing precision for slices, dices, crumbles, granulations and strips. Following the success of the Urschel’s largest cheese dicer in the range, the Affinity Integra® Dicer produces precision small to mid-range cut sizes and is a scaled down version of the larger Affinity dicer.
The Integra-D’s turnkey approach fits easily into production lines and is designed to replace in-line RA series machines. It offers processors a beneficial upgrade with the ultimate in sanitation, a larger infeed, larger impeller case, newer design, and potentially 20 to even 50 percent higher capacities.
How Does It Work?
This high-performance dicer offers simple operation at the push of a button, and easy to follow steps for maintenance and changeovers.
The three-dimensional dicer accepts product up to 120 mm and product is delivered to a feed hopper and enters a rotating impeller. Centrifugal force holds the product against the inside of the case. Impeller paddles carry the product past the slicing knife and an adjustable slice gate at the top of the case determines the slice thickness.
Slices pass between the rotating feed drum and feed spindle
and then enter the circular knives where they are cut into strips. The strips pass directly into the crosscut knives where the final cut is made to create a precision dice. The stripper plate removes product from the spaces between the circular knives and acts as a shear edge for the crosscut knives. Strip cuts can be produced by removing the crosscut knife spindle.
With similar characteristics as the larger Affinity, this model effectively processes all types of coldtemperature cheeses including highfat or imitation varieties. The machine features continuous operation for uninterrupted production.
ALTERNATIVE DAIRY CUTTING EQUIPMENT
FOR SHREDDING, GRATING AND SHAVING
Choosing the right size reduction
Slicing
and cutting solutions for fresh produce
Food manufacturers are always looking for ways to increase productivity while minimising costs. For fruit and vegetable processors, this can be achieved with the right size reduction equipment for their operation. Heat and Control discusses common considerations for fresh produce processors looking to invest in capital equipment.
Emerging trends make vegetables retail ready
Time poor consumers continue to seek healthy choices in the supermarket which in turn is driving demand for healthy and convenient vegetable products. To meet this demand, many growers are looking at how they can harvest and cut vegetables to add value to their annual yield and prepare for the mass market.
Innovative Style Cuts
Both fresh and frozen vegetable processors are taking a proactive approach to capture
this market. Innovative style cuts have been developed, which are unique in their shape and can be used in a prepared meal kit for customers to easily add to recipes at home.
Zucchini or squash can be cut into a long, noodle like strip, while beets and carrots could be featured in a novelty bow-tie cut, instead of conventional straight cuts. The most advanced size reduction equipment on the market can deliver a clean, precise cut for fresh vegetables, resulting in a limited moisture release for increased shelf life versus alternative cutting methods.
Another option growing in popularity is reducing waste and increasing yield by capturing excess juice from fruits and vegetables during the cutting process. Juice collection trays and other options are available to assist in this operation.
Establish produce characteristics
After determining potential goals and
avenues for growth, take a close look at the product or ingredient being processed and identifying characteristics of the application in order to ascertain the best-suited form of size reduction.
Some ingredients are easily processed through gravity feeding, while others need to maintain structural features and are more easily belt-fed into the cutting area where the timing of cuts corresponds to the belt speed, a method often seen when slicing leafy vegetables. Density, structural fragility, temperature, flow-ability, should be considered.
Talk to us about the application
Before purchasing a piece of equipment, talk to us about your specific application. Heat and Control has been assisting customers in selecting the right piece of equipment for their particular application for over 75 years. A thorough evaluation of the application and the fresh produce involved can assist in future R&D and determine the benchmark for potential yields. Comparing the results of different slicers or discovering additional cutting capabilities for existing machinery can assist in the decision-making process for a capital purchase.
Quality
in Manufacturing
The quality of the equipment manufacturing process and precision go hand-in-hand with hygienically designed materials, ease of maintenance, and cleanability. The type of knives used in size reduction technology is key to producing a cleaner cut. Ensure the knives are made from high grade stainless steel to produce the sharpest edge, leading to a longer knife life, with fewer knife changes.
Rigorous quality assurance testing should also take place to make sure the equipment can withstand tough environments.
Service and support
In addition to evaluating your product and the appropriate size reduction technology for your application, you must also consider what ongoing service and support is available. Ask about the technical support department hours and experience, and method of dispatching technical service personnel to a plant. Determine commonly replaced parts on the slicer, and policy on availability to minimise potential downtime. Measure these costs and benefits and put this together with the initial cost of the potential slicer.
Types of slicers
With a belt-fed, wheel slicer, produce is delivered onto two high-speed feed belts sloping together to form a ‘V’-shaped feed trough. The belts are synchronised with the rotating slicing wheel to ensure proper advance of product per revolution of the wheel. Knives under tension serve as spokes and support the rim of the slicing wheel. The knives are slightly twisted to create a uniform pitch from the hub to the rim.
The TranSlicer® by Urschel is an example of this type of machine. This type of cutting application is found in slicing machines ideally suited for leafy vegetables, with popular applications including romaine, iceberg, kale, radicchio, cabbage, spinach, celery, cucumbers, eggplant, honeydew, cantaloupe, and leek.
Knife pitch serves to pull product through
the slicing wheel and produce a precise slice thickness. One slice at a time is made to prevent any crushing of the product. The cut slices are then released into a sloped discharge chute to reduce their speed before exiting the machine. This type of slicer accepts firm and leafy (or more compressible) products up to certain diameters, and is ideal for elongated products that benefit from proper orientation, reducing overall waste.
With proper feeding and orientation, a processor running 4.8 mm flat slices of carrots can achieve a capacity ranging from 4,500 to 5,500 kg per hour; a processor running 4.8 mm flat slices of cucumbers can achieve an expected capacity of between 3,600 to 4,500 kg per hour.
Versatile comminution mincer/slicer Produce is guided to the high-speed, rotating impeller. When a produce reaches the impeller, it revolves at a high speed inside the cutting head. Centrifugal force propels the produce outward past the cutting edges of the stationary reduction head.
These types of cutting applications are used in the production of dry, paste and liquid size reduction applications. Popular reduction applications would include purées for fruit juices, and fruits and vegetables for baby food or soups, with various consistencies available. A Comitrol® by Urschel is ideal for this type of size reduction.
