Office machine / grinder recommendations

[PiccoloLatte]

Hey Snobbos
So I am tasked with recommending a commercial setup for a corporate office. Will have a barista on staff. Maybe 400-500 coffees per day.

While I've got machines in mind already, I'm struggling with what is new/good in terms of grinders.

I feel like the Robur S is one option, but would be nice to have a second grinder for different coffees, and/or one for filter/batch. Not sure what is the best price/value range for such things.

Maybe smaller grinder is good for single origins, bigger for the house blend to manage overall cost? I would love to say "get two massive X grinders, plus a filter grinder for batch brew", but don't know this will fly budget wise. Even though budget not set in stone, would need to justify recommendations.

Any thoughts from knowledgeable snobs?

[Caffeinator]

Wow... There are plenty of cafes which would be wrapped to do that sort of volume.

Yes- Definitely at the Robur S end for the duty grinder. I have had a play with one, and whilst it was super quick, there was often 2g or more variation which was concerning. The Kony S is far more accurate, but won't cut it for 500 a day.

I'd also consider something like the Mahlkonig E80S or the forthcoming GBW version of it. Something smaller will be fine for origins if you go that way, but you might actually need a decaf grinder more than an origin grinder. It will depend on what the budget is. Drop a model or two down in a range (eg: Kony or Super Jolly/E65S/E65S GBW) and you have a great origin or decaf grinder.

If you do decide on batch, perhaps look for a good, compact bag grinder. Ditting KR/KF come to mind and there are often bargains to be had from cafes that didn't make it.

For mine, 500 per day is a 3 group machine brief and given that it may well happen in waves, that volume could really push even a gun barista. You may really need 2 of them for the rush periods.

Ultimately management is paying people to work, not stand around for 20 min waiting for a coffee, so that will also need to be looked at.

[amberale]

Phark!
10 hour day, 40-50 coffees an hour.
That barista is earning their $$.

[PiccoloLatte]

Hmm. That is making me reassess my napkin maths... Lol.

Was roughly working off around 200 people in the office who drink coffee and may have 2-3 coffees a day. But perhaps I'm overestimating how much it will be utilised. There are also likely to be other small tea & coffee points around the building with nespresso/automatic machine type setups.

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

Don't forget that people will still at times head off-site for a coffee, even if you've got good stuff on tap. Some discussions work better outside the building.

[LeroyC]

500 cups a day is often the threshold at which cafes get a second machine. Partly so that they have extra capacity during the rush periods, but also so that they have a back up if the main machine breaks down. I gather this will be company owned and operated though and will be an operating expense rather than aiming to be a profit making venture in its own right, so a single machine should be fine. If for any reason it breaks down you'd simply put up the closed sign and staff would be drinking Blend 43 until it's fixed. A 3 group that has volumetric dosing as a minimum is a must. Other features like individually operated groups would be a nice to have. And you'll need two baristas as well - both working during the rush and then covering each other’s breaks. Grinders are easier in some respect, but Caffeinator is the expert so I'd heed his advice above. Other than the Mazzer ones you've mentioned you could look at similar size grinders from Anfim, Eureka, Mahlkonig and Compak for the main espresso grinder. The second grinder could possibly be a single dosing grinder if you think it would be feasible to pre-dose your other coffees into individual containers. It does mean a bit of pre work each day, but allows for a lot of flexibility and for that grinder to at least be used for 2 other espresso options (decaf and SO), and even for filter brewing once a day if it's easy enough to readjust.