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Most manufacturers recommend that roasters don't use a machine at full capacity. As an over-all rule, they recommend using about 75% of the listed capacity (depending on the manufacturer) to permit for consistent airflow through the roast.

You can also go right down to 50% capacity or lower for sample roasting and profiling. However, this will mean you have to regulate the way in which you roast as you have a great deal more space in the drum.

Altogether, this mean's that it's vital that you take a balanced approach when choosing the size of your roaster; too large could be just as detrimental as too small coffee bean roaster machine. For more insight, and to break down roasters in to a few different size categories, I spoke to Neil Maree from Genio Roasters in Johannesburg, South Africa. Continue reading to discover what he said.

Picking The Right Size Is Important
Neil says that at Genio, clients are often unaware of the details they have to consider when buying a new roaster. “People often require the drastically wrong size, or they ask about the buying price of all of our roasters,” he says. “To me, this points to a lack of knowledge and understanding about both their target market and their power to sell.

He says that while people often look for larger roasters as a means of ensuring that they have the capability to expand, it's not too simple. “A lot of people have think they've to choose a large roaster in order to turn a profit. These people genuinely believe that they want a huge machine simply to roast coffee for the area community.

“Ultimately, upscaling your operation is easy, so long as you have a buyer for the coffee. Being able to roast 5,000kg of coffee does not mean that you could sell 5,000kg. Start by selling 1kg, then 100kg, and then 500kg, and so on,” Neil explains. “Often, we find ourselves convincing people to choose smaller machines.

However, this doesn't mean there aren't mistakes among people trying to find smaller machines. Neil says: “On another end, we've got those who think that they may buy a 1kg roaster and begin a business from it.

“It requires 15 minutes to roast a set on a 1kg roaster, that'll sell for maybe US $30. In order to make a salary as a business owner with this, you'd need certainly to stand behind the device for the entire day,” he explains. “This leaves you no time for you to sell! Roasting does not equal making money. Selling equals making money.

To illustrate the time cost for using roasters of certain sizes, Neil compiled some models and forecasts for roasters of different skill levels that you will find here.

Sizes & Categories
For the purposes of this list, we've broken down commercial coffee roasters into six main categories by capacity: sample, small batch, small commercial, medium commercial, large commercial, and extra large commercial.

Sample Roaster (50g to 500g)
While the name suggests, the key focus of an example roaster is to judge types of a certain coffee before you commit to buying large volumes of it.

While you will find exclusive and high-quality coffee roasted in small batches on sample roasters, they are not by yourself suited to anyone trying to begin a roastery at a sizable scale.

There is also lots of overlap between craft and sample roasting only at that range; many home roasters will naturally adhere to a low minimum capacity if they are roasting coffee to solely be enjoyed at home.

Small Batch Roaster (1kg to 3kg)
After sample roasters, the next phase up for roasting coffee at almost any commercial scale is really a small batch roaster. These range in size from 1kg to around 3kg and are great for sample roasting in larger batches or identifying the right roast profile for a fresh coffee.

They're a great choice for micro-roasters, as well as successful coffee shops trying to roast their particular beans. Most coffee shops don't sell more than 10kg of coffee per day, but even if they do get close, a 1kg to 3kg roaster will have the ability to deliver that in a matter of hours.

For a café or perhaps a smaller existing coffee business, this is a great spot to start. By starting small and being strategic about just how much coffee you roast, you are able to develop a wholesale customer base steadily minus the risky overheads of a more expensive roaster.

Neil informs me that this is the goal market for Genio's smallest machine, the Genio 3 Micro Coffee Roaster, launching in December 2020. “With this specific, we wanted to target on people have been ‘owner-operators '; one or two-person businesses who roast and sell independently,” he says.

“A 3kg roaster is the backbone of the owner-operated roasting industry.  You've enough capacity to actually grow with a low enough capital outlay to be accessible to anyone with some savings and a passion for business.”

Small batch roasters also provide their uses for larger roasteries, however. Many can keep a device of this size on-hand to profile new coffees without wasting large quantities of fresh green coffee. These profiles will then be translated onto larger commercial machines to begin roasting at scale.

However, additionally it is important to notice that the consistency will naturally decrease as you begin roasting a larger amount of batches. As an example, roasting 600 batches in a 1kg machine will leave more room for error than, say, roasting 100 batches on a 6kg machine. Keep in mind that a lack of consistency could have an effect on customer retention.

Small Commercial Roaster (5kg to 15kg)
Commercial non-small batch roasters start at around 5kg. The next phase up from a tiny batch roaster, these machines are far more suitable for teams trying to roast coffee at scale as opposed to small businesses or cafés trying to diversify.

“A Genio 6 roaster can roast around two tonnes of coffee a month,” Neil tells me. “That's lots of coffee.” He notes, however, that not surprisingly potential output, smaller-capacity commercial roasters remain quite versatile and can still be used to roast very small batches for profiling.

Neil also warns against roasting to a machine's maximum weekly or monthly output. “Roasting two tonnes of coffee on a 6kg machine is similar to driving 5,000 miles on a monthly basis,” he says. “It is unquestionably possible, but you'd have to have a mechanic regularly carry out a significant service on your car.”

Finally, Neil notes a roaster of this size is really a significant investment. For a lot of up-and-coming roasters, he warns a larger roaster could possibly be bigger compared to the business needs. “Even although you can roast two tonnes of coffee a month, you'll need to think: who have you been going to sell this coffee to?

Medium Commercial Roaster (15kg to 30kg)
Machines with a set size of around 15kg are most suitable for existing roasting businesses that have a great base of customers. Many successful specialty coffee roasters will discover that here is the biggest machine they'll ever need.

Neil notes that lots of roasters find it tempting to sell their preexisting roaster to finance an expensive purchase, but warns against it. He says that he often sees this when people arrive at him to get larger roasters, such as the Genio 15 or the Genio 30.

“Let's say you have a 6kg roaster and you intend to buy a larger roaster. I'd say that you shouldn't sell the 6kg roaster – that will become your backup. Mechanical faults do happen – things break.” At this point, having an established customer base, being left with no roaster could possibly be catastrophic.

Large Commercial Roaster (30kg to 70kg)
Moving past the 15kg to 30kg bracket will simply be necessary when you have an enormous customer base. Roasters of this size are apt to be operating on a sizable commercial scale.

However, only at that stage, there are apt to be unforeseen expenses that can come combined with the purchase of a more substantial roaster, as Neil explains.

“[With these bigger roasters], people often don't have the right gas supply or ventilation in position,” he says. “Maybe it's just too hard to perform a chimney from the premises or a gas main in… only at that size, it's a significant consideration.

“At Genio, we offer pre-inspection through video calls or face-to-face to be sure our larger products can fit into your space.”

Beyond ventilation and gas supply, you also have the actual size of one's space to consider. As much roasters start a tiny scale and gradually scale up, their premises can often only fit a couple of small machines. At this stage, it might be necessary to relocate.

Extra Large Commercial Roaster (70kg and up)
Beyond 70kg, extra large commercial roasters are generally employed for mass roasted coffee as opposed to high-scoring specialty coffee. Operating a device of this size will demand a separate team, and it will probably be used to deliver a regular, signature flavour profile on a wide scale as opposed to roasting different single origin lots, for example.

Similar to the last size category, roasters will also have to consider the physical constraints of the space before installing a machine of this size. These roasters will often be found in large open manufacturing spaces, as they may require 50 to 60 square metres of space and often weigh over two tonnes.

Other Points To Consider
Neil informs me that as well as living area, ventilation, and gas supply, in addition you need to think about machine maintenance if you're upgrading to a more substantial machine. Bigger roasters take more effort to completely clean and could be more complex to maintain.

Changing the size of your roaster may also affect the profiles you have identified for roasting certain coffees. While these existing profiles can still be used as a baseline, remember that machines of different sizes will act differently through the roast.

Be prepared to need certainly to tweak and change. “You can't truly copy profiles from one roaster to another, although we do go to extensive efforts as manufacturers to try and make that easier,” Neil says.

However, Neil says that the time it requires to achieve a certain roast profile shouldn't really change as the size of your machine does. “Your roasting technique shouldn't be determined by the device,” he says. “It ought to be determined by the flavour profile of the coffee. Your machine must manage to achieving these results.