Innovation is the way forward for pizza. That’s what Sally Lyons Wyatt, global executive vice president and chief advisor for consumer goods and foodservice insights, Circana, said on a recent episode of Baking & Snack’s podcast Since Sliced Bread. Innovation can look like new topping combinations, new crust styles and even new formats. 

Being on the leading edge requires flexible operations as Great Kitchens Food Co., Romeoville, Ill., found. In the November 2024 issue of Baking & Snack, Dan Malovany, executive editor, gave readers a tour of how the pizza manufacturer handles multiple products and crust types for a variety of channels and customers. Admir Basic, chief executive officer of Great Kitchens, noted the growth the company has seen in flatbread pizzas. 

Flatbread and pizza crusts do have some crossover, but they are different enough that it requires planning and adjustments to accommodate the different doughs. 

“While the shapes of pizza crusts and flatbreads are similar, their formulas vary greatly,” said Jerry Murphy, vice president of sales, Gemini Bakery Solutions. “Dough development and the resultant raw dough characteristics such as stickiness can have an impact on how they are made and processed.” 

Flatbreads have the benefit of sharing some similar processes to traditional pizza, which can make production crossover possible.

“The foundation of a flatbread sheeting line and a pizza line is largely the same,” said Nick Magistrelli, vice president of sales, Rademaker USA. “The main differences lie in the configuration and tooling, such as cutters for product shape, depending on the type of final product you want to create. For instance, flatbread lines typically don’t include depositing machines but often feature an oil sprayer or discs at the end of the line.” 

Pizza crusts and flatbreads often include a fermentation time, dough band forming, sheeting and then cutting. Depending on the type of product, fermentation time and position in the process will change. Alexander Weissbach, head of dough technology at Rondo, pointed out that thinner doughs like lavash, wraps and thin-crust pizzas will need fermentation ahead of dough forming. Some pizza crusts may not need any fermentation before the dough band forming. Thicker doughs like pita can sometimes need to be rested before and after cutting. These doughs can also require docking or decorating. It’s about knowing what the product needs and having the tools to make it happen. 

“Depending on the type of flatbread, an additional resting conveyor is needed between our line and the oven,” Weissbach said. “For product changeover between pizza and flatbread, just set the correct thickness of the dough band and use the correct cutter or stamping die.” 

Clint Adams, commercial director, North America, premium product segments, AMF Bakery Systems, pointed out that while some pizza crusts and flatbreads both use sheeting processes, the dough itself can be very different, and that requires different capabilities on the equipment as well as extra steps. Those changes can include bowl resting, in-line resting and different die cuts with decorations.

“A large number of the flatbreads are high hydration and long-fermented doughs compared to some of the sheeted pizza products,” he said. “These formulations can be included with the addition of these changes in the current process. At AMF Bakery Systems, we have converted an AMF Tromp line that uses a three-roll sheeting process to our stress-free system to accommodate these doughs.”

That’s the beauty of a sheeting process, though, he said: the wide variety of products that can be produced on one piece of equipment with just a few formulation changes, cutter changes and packaging considerations. 

When looking to create a wide variety of pizza and flatbread products, the key to designing the line correctly is to know what the various doughs require. 

“Manufacturers are always looking to expand the capabilities of existing lines, but it is important to consider this before purchasing a line,” said John Giacoio, Rheon USA. “Trends change, and new products become popular over time. Adapting a line to be able to make new products is a great way to extend the usefulness of the line. At Rheon, our lines are modular.” 

These modular setups allow bakers to transform their lines quickly by moving equipment in and out. 

“If a customer needs to add another cross roller or stretcher to increase the ability to reduce the dough sheet, we simply need to separate the line and add another component,” Giacoio said. 

The dough coming out of the dough chunker will determine what kind of components and equipment need to be moved in and out of the line. Magistrelli noted that for a stiff dough bakers would use a chunker pre-sheeter, but in the case of a highly hydrated dough, bakers would need to switch to a different pre-sheeter. 

“Handling softer doughs might require a spreading conveyor in the line to widen the dough sheet,” he said. “Thanks to the modular design of our systems, it is possible to adapt a line to produce both flatbreads and pizzas. The sheeting technology and modular setup provide a great deal of flexibility.”

To assist bakers with processing softer doughs, Fritsch, a Multivac Group company, offers its Soft Dough Sheeter SDS. This sheeter is designed to treat doughs gently throughout the process. The rest of the line configuration will also be determined by cutting method. 

“Depending on the desired product, two cutting methods are used,” said Stefan Praller, senior director, customer experience, Fritsch. “In the ‘sheet and cut process’ for pizza bases without a distinct rim and flatbreads, a cutting roller is used to cut the dough pieces from a dough sheet. In the ‘sheet and cut and press process’ for pizza bases with a distinct rim, the dough pieces are punched out and at the same time, gently pressed.”  

Praller noted that the second method allows the dough to maintain its structure, looking and tasting homemade. 

CBF Bakery Systems offers customizable, modular lines and equipment that allow manufacturers a diverse portfolio of pizza production. 

“The integration of variable speeds and advanced control systems into our solutions provides manufacturers with the ability to make quick, precise adjustments to meet changing production demands, all while minimizing changeover times,” said Jared Achterberg, sales representative, CBF.

Achterberg noted that CBF’s modular systems are also designed to integrate with existing equipment so that pizza bakers can scale their operations and diversify their products with minimal investment.

“This scalability is key for businesses looking to expand without overhauling their entire production infrastructure,” he said. “We simplify the complex adjustments that are required to handle various pizza crusts, making it easy for manufacturers to switch between different production runs without losing efficiency.”

Royal Kaak offers both dough ball and sheeting lines. It has designed its sheeted pizza processing lines to be able to handle a wide range of dough types with complete control over size, shape and thickness. Bakers are able to produce not only Italian- and American-style pizzas but also flatbreads and gluten-free crusts. The equipment is designed to impart minimal tension on the dough sheet and the thickness can be easily adjusted. 

“In a pressing line, flexible proofing times and an exchange of press dies allow for a production of various shapes and thicknesses,” said Johan Laros, managing director, Royal Kaak. “Our sheeting lines offer a wide range of cutting shapes as well as changes in recipes and product thickness, including modules to emphasize product aspects such as a rim or a manual appearance docking, which allow even more variations.” 

In addition to modularity, the components and tooling on the line play a big part in adapting the line to different crust styles and even a flatbread. Not only must bakers have the right tooling on hand but they must be quick and easy to change. 

“The overall setup of the line is designed for high-production efficiency,” Magistrelli said of Rademaker’s equipment. “This is enabled by easily removeable tools, reduced change parts, exchangeable scrapers and bins, and various options to minimize required cleaning efforts.” 

To make changeovers even easier on today’s workforce, Rademaker lines are designed with unique fit tooling. Tools and components can only be attached on the equipment one way, which prevents errors. 

“Because of the lightweight and more compact tooling, handling and detaching the tools is as easy as possible and can be done by one person,” Magistrelli said. 

Rondo offers bakers a carousel tool storage above the line for up to four cutters to make changeover of those cutters simple. The lines come with tool detection to prevent the wrong tool from being applied. 

Praller noted that the Fritsch Impressa pizza line can produce a variety of types, sizes and shapes of pizza with only a change in tools. The line has been designed to accommodate these changes without the need for special assembly tools. 

Flexibility is necessary for topping systems as well. Tom Trost, sales manager, Quantum, said that sauce applicators with multiple lane and row configurations will provide bakers with the flexibility needed to move between pizza sizes and lane centers. Recipe storage can help automate these processes by saving settings and making these adjustments. 

“The ability to change out sauce pattern plates and pepperoni clusters without the use of tools is an important feature as well,” he said. “There may be the need to apply different sauces and pepperoni slice sizes.” 

This article is an excerpt from the March 2025 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Flatbread & Pizza Processing, click here.