How an Automated Dough Dividing & Rounding Line Improved Efficiency, Consistency, and ROI

Background: Rapid Expansion Brings New Production Challenges

Wallace is one of China’s fastest-growing fast-food brands, known for its extensive network of outlets and standardized product offerings. As demand for hamburger buns continued to rise across regions, Wallace faced a familiar challenge common to high-growth food brands: how to scale production without sacrificing consistency, food safety, or cost control.

With hundreds of outlets relying on centralized or regional bakeries, even small inefficiencies in bun production could quickly multiply into high operational costs.

The Core Challenges Wallace Faced

Before upgrading its production line, Wallace’s bakery operations encountered several bottlenecks:

• Inconsistent bun weight and shape, affecting sandwich assembly and final product appearance
• High labor dependency during dough portioning and rounding
• Limited output scalability during peak demand periods
• Rising labor costs and increased training requirements
• Difficulty maintaining uniform quality across multiple production shifts

These issues made it clear that traditional semi-manual processes could no longer support Wallace’s growth strategy.

The Solution: Automated Dough Dividing and Rounding Line

To address these challenges, Wallace introduced an automated hamburger bun production line centered around two critical machines:

• Automatic Dough Divider
• High-Precision Dough Rounder

Supplied by Zhejiang Oucheng Machinery, this solution was designed specifically for high-volume bakery applications producing hamburger buns, bread rolls, and similar products.

Why This Configuration Was Chosen

Instead of investing in a fully complex line all at once, Wallace focused on automating the most labor-intensive and quality-sensitive stages of production:

• Dough portioning
• Dough rounding and pre-shaping

This targeted approach delivered fast results with controlled investment.

How the Line Works in Practice

Step 1: Accurate Dough Dividing

The automatic dough divider ensures:

• Consistent dough weight for every bun
• Minimal dough stress to protect gluten structure
• Stable performance across long production runs

By eliminating manual portioning, Wallace significantly reduced weight deviation and material waste.

Step 2: Uniform Dough Rounding

The dough rounder gently shapes each piece into a smooth, uniform ball:

• Improved surface tension for better fermentation
• Consistent bun height and diameter after baking
• Reduced rejection rates during downstream processing

This step proved critical in ensuring every hamburger bun met Wallace’s strict visual and functional standards.

Implementation Process

The installation process was completed efficiently:

• Equipment layout optimized for existing bakery space
• On-site commissioning and operator training provided
• Seamless integration with fermentation and baking stages

Thanks to the modular design of the machines, Wallace was able to upgrade its production capacity without disrupting ongoing operations.

Quantifiable Results

After implementation, Wallace achieved measurable improvements:

• Production efficiency increased by approximately 30%
• Labor requirements reduced by 2–3 operators per shift
• Weight deviation reduced to within tight tolerances
• Product consistency significantly improved across batches
• Return on investment achieved within a short payback period

More importantly, the automated line enabled Wallace to scale production confidently while maintaining brand consistency nationwide.

Why Automation Made the Difference

This case highlights a key insight for large bakery and foodservice brands:

Automation is not just about speed—it is about control, repeatability, and long-term cost stability.

By focusing on core process automation, Wallace transformed production from a labor-driven operation into a data-driven, standardized system.

A Proven Model for Growing Bakery Brands

The solution implemented for Wallace is not unique to one brand. It is widely applicable to:

• Fast-food chains
• Central kitchens
• Industrial bakeries producing hamburger buns, bread rolls, steamed buns, or filled products

With flexible configurations, Zhejiang Oucheng Machinery supports both incremental upgrades and full production line automation.

Payback Example

• Scenario: Industrial bakery producing hamburger buns/bread rolls
• Production:120 pcs/min × 8 hrs/day × 300 days= 17.28M pieces/year
• Investment:$68,000
• Labor Savings:3 operators × $38,000= $114,000/year
• Product Savings:1.5% weight deviation reduction × $0.08/unit × 17.28M= $20,736/year
• Total Savings:$134,736/year
• Payback Period:6.1 months
• 3-Year ROI:595%
  

Final Thoughts

Wallace’s success demonstrates how the right automation strategy can unlock growth without compromising quality. By investing in reliable dough dividing and rounding technology, the brand achieved higher efficiency, lower costs, and consistent results at scale.

Is your bakery facing similar production challenges?

Contact Zhejiang Oucheng Machinery to receive a customized automation solution designed for your products, capacity, and growth plans.