Success Story | Food and Beverage
Efficiency and reliability baked into Panike’s KAESER solution
Panike Pastry & Bakery, a leading Portuguese manufacturer of frozen bakery products, has enhanced operational reliability and energy efficiency by implementing KAESER solutions across its manufacturing units. This began with a comprehensive air audit and the installation of a complete compressed air system featuring four rotary screw compressors - including two frequency-controlled models - comprehensive compressed air treatment, and a SIGMA AIR MANAGER 4.0. This configuration has delivered a 12% reduction in energy consumption while ensuring the stringent air quality required for food safety, directly supporting Panike’s sustainability and product quality commitments.
Project snapshot
| Company Name: | Panike Pastry & Bakery | Industry Sector: | Food & Beverage |
| Location: | Portugal | Key Application(s): | Control of production and packaging lines |
| KAESER Subsidiary or Partner: | KAESER Portugal | ||
| Project Scope: | Guarantee an efficient, reliable, and safe supply of high-quality compressed air - vital for food safety - to meet the fluctuating demands of multiple production lines. Maximise overall system efficiency to minimise environmental impact and support Panike’s sustainability goals. | ||
| KAESER Solution: |
4 x KAESER rotary screw compressors: 2x ASD series (fixed-speed), 1x BSD SFC series and 1x CSD SFC series (variable-speed) 2x SECOTEC TE series refrigeration dryers 1x SIGMA AIR MANAGER 4.0 compressed air management system 1x AQUAMAT CF series oil-water separator Complete with KAESER compressed air filters and a 1,000 litre air receiver |
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| Project Outcomes: | Achieved a 12% reduction in energy consumption and a 100% reserve capacity, eliminating the risk of costly downtime. The SIGMA AIR MANAGER 4.0 provides comprehensive energy management and predictive maintenance capabilities, crucial for maximising overall production output. | ||
Henrique Soares (CEO Panike Pastry & Bakery)
Founded in 1986, Panike is a second-generation, family-owned Portuguese manufacturer specialising in high-quality frozen bakery and pastry products for the global market. With an extensive portfolio of ready-to-serve and thaw-and-bake specialties, the company serves as a strategic partner for supermarkets, the HORECA sector (hotel, restaurant, catering / café), and distributors in over 30 countries. Their range includes the iconic Pastel de Nata and their market-leading savoury puff pastries. Most notable is the ham and cheese ‘Panike’ - a signature product so deeply integrated into Portuguese food culture that the brand name has become the generic term for the category itself.
Automated dosing of the traditional egg custard into Pastel de Nata pastry cases.
The signature ham and cheese ‘Panike’ pastries precisely positioned on the automated production line.
Panike operates four state-of-the-art manufacturing units, utilising fully automated production lines to ensure product consistency. From the initial cooking and cooling systems through to packaging and quality control, compressed air plays a vital role across the pastry, dairy, and bakery lines. It powers the actuators and sensors that manage the automated cooking and cooling systems, regulating critical factors such as temperatures and ingredient flow. Additionally, it drives the cylinders that open and close valves and the pneumatic grippers used to handle products with precision throughout the packaging process.
Panike operates four state-of-the-art manufacturing units, utilising fully automated production lines to ensure product consistency. Pictured Panike’s manufacturing unit in Água Longa, Santo Tirso.
Project Scope
Optimising efficiency and operational reliability
Panike first engaged KAESER Portugal in 2012 for urgent compressed air equipment repairs after their previous provider failed to respond effectively. This initial requirement evolved into a comprehensive system review, centred on a major challenge: ensuring energy efficiency and operational reliability across multiple production lines. Achieving this would mean efficiently managing fluctuating consumption patterns while simultaneously meeting the stringent air quality standards for food safety that are a constant daily priority.
As energy accounts for approximately 80% of a compressed air system’s life cycle costs, it was a primary target for Panike’s sustainability goals. To manage the complexities of multiple lines, Panike required a flexible, scalable solution that would lower the company’s carbon footprint while guaranteeing that production - the heart of the business - never stopped.
To address this, KAESER performed an Air Demand Analysis (ADA) to analyse the site’s actual consumption profile. This data was then processed through the KAESER Energy Saving System (KESS) to simulate various operating scenarios and identify the most efficient configuration tailored to Panike’s unique demand patterns.
Pneumatic grippers used to precisely handle and position products on the automated bakery line.
KAESER Solution
Adaptive splitting and intelligent control
KAESER recommended a ‘splitting’ solution using multiple compressors to ensure the system remained highly adaptable. As Sérgio Neutel, Compressed Air Systems Specialist at KAESER Portugal, explains: “Rather than relying on a single large compressor, we recommended a multi-unit splitting system. This would ensure peak energy efficiency across all levels of consumption, whether the factory is at half-capacity or full throttle.”
The compressed air system features four rotary screw compressors: two ASD units alongside two frequency-controlled models - a CSD SFC series and a BSD SFC series. To meet Panike’s stringent air quality requirements, the system includes two SECOTEC TE series energy-saving refrigeration dryers, KAESER FILTER products, and an AQUAMAT CF series oil-water separator for reliable condensate management. A 1,000 litre air receiver provides the necessary storage capacity.
The KAESER compressed air system ‘splitting’ solution which uses multiple compressors to ensure the system remains highly adaptable to varying load levels.
To ensure these components work in perfect harmony, the entire station is managed by a SIGMA AIR MANAGER 4.0 (SAM 4.0). This master controller choreographs all equipment in real time to provide:
- Adaptive management: Coordinating switching operations with unprecedented precision based on demand.
- Total transparency: Providing a real-time window into system health and consumption patterns.
- Predictive maintenance-ready: Detecting potential issues before they cause unplanned downtime
- Industrie 4.0 connectivity: Allowing seamless integration with Panike’s centralised management system.
As Sérgio Neutel concluded: “The SIGMA AIR MANAGER 4.0 allows us to take timely action and provide seamless communication with Panike's management systems.”
The SIGMA AIR MANAGER 4.0 (SAM 4.0) manages the entire system, choreographing all equipment in real time to ensure maximum efficiency and dependability.
Project Outcomes
Proven results, sustained performance
The new KAESER compressed air system provided Panike with a versatile, reliable, and safe source of compressed air, delivering a 12% energy saving compared to the previous system. And, the 100% reserve capacity means Panike has total peace of mind; production continues uninterrupted even during scheduled maintenance. Today, Panike utilises KAESER compressed air systems across all four of the group’s manufacturing units. Backed by ongoing expert technical support from KAESER Portugal, the partnership has evolved into a strategic relationship built on innovation, efficiency, and mutual trust. As Panike continues its path of growth and international expansion, the focus remains firmly on sustainability and the digitalisation of its industrial processes. KAESER Portugal continues to support this journey, delivering solutions that ensure greater energy efficiency and digital integration, perfectly aligned with the challenges of the future.
The system includes a complete compressed air treatment solution - including two SECOTEC TE series energy-saving refrigeration dryers along with KAESER FILTER products - to meet stringent air quality standards for food safety.
As our production involves highly fluctuating compressed air demands, we needed the right equipment to address those challenges. After all these years, the results have been truly positive.
António Fernandes, Production Director, Panike Pastry & Bakery