Industrial bakery proofing room monitoring
Monitors proofing-room temperature and humidity, oven temperature and stage timing, holding bread volume and texture consistent from shift to shift.
Why this monitoring is needed
Dough fermentation is a biological process, strongly dependent on temperature and humidity: a few degrees shifts proofing time by tens of minutes. In an industrial bakery running to a fixed schedule that means dough that is either under- or over-proofed, and a poor product either way.
Humidity plays its own role: low humidity dries and skins the dough surface and prevents it opening in the oven. The operator only learns this once the bread is out — which is to say, once nothing can be done.
What gets measured
Proofing room temperature and humidity
Several points in the room — racks near the air inlet and the farthest racks do not share conditions.
Oven zone temperature
A Type-K thermocouple per oven zone, each read separately.
Dough temperature
Dough temperature out of the mixer sets the start of fermentation and has to stay in a narrow band.
Stage timing
Counting rack entry and exit with a dry contact gives each batch's real proofing time.
Fan and steam generator operation
Circulation fan and steam generator current prove the room conditions are actually being maintained.
Recommended equipment
Every model below is from the Fidar Electronics range. The final combination is set after a site survey or an engineering consultation.
FCD6455-01
FIDAQUIRE FCD6455-01 Industrial Data Logger
Central logger recording each batch's conditions and comparing shifts
View product ←
FBC0232-01
FBC0232-01 CANopen Input Card
CANopen card chaining proofing-room and oven sensors
View product ←
FTA3070-01
Temperature and Humidity Sensor
Proofing-room temperature and humidity sensor, several per room
View product ←
FTH1260-01
Type-K Thermocouple Sensor
Type-K thermocouple sensor for the oven zones
View product ←
FTR0100-01
PT100 Temperature Sensor
PT100 sensor for dough temperature out of the mixer
View product ←
FDD0001-02
3-Channel Dry Contact Detector
3-channel dry-contact detector for rack entry/exit and oven alarms
View product ←
FAC2000-23
3-Channel Networked AC Current Sensor
3-channel AC current sensor for circulation fan, steam generator and mixer
View product ←
FDR0508-01
FDR0508-01 8-Channel Relay Output Card
8-channel relay card for proofing-room heating, steam and ventilation
View product ←Alarm and automation rules
- 1
Proofing-room temperature out of band: alarm with a suggested adjustment to that batch's proofing time.
- 2
Humidity below threshold: steam generator started by relay before the dough surface skins.
- 3
Point-to-point spread in the room beyond the allowed band: poor air distribution alarm.
- 4
Oven zone outside the product window: immediate alarm naming the zone.
- 5
Batch proofing time outside the standard range: recorded in the batch file for quality analysis.
What the operator gets
Product consistency is held across shifts and seasons.
Waste from under- and over-proofing falls.
Each batch's conditions are recorded, making a quality complaint traceable.
Frequently asked questions
Will a sensor survive the high humidity of a proofing room?
Fidar's temperature and humidity sensor reads up to 100 % RH, but its rated condition is non-condensing. In a proofing room the sensor must sit in a vented protective housing away from direct steam impingement — build that into the installation design.
How do you handle multi-zone tunnel ovens?
Each zone gets its own thermocouple channel with its own thresholds. A CANopen card carries up to 64 sensors on one cable, so a multi-zone oven is covered without a separate home run per point.
Related solutions
Want this solution on your own site?
Send us the site details and we will put together the equipment list and a technical proposal to match.