Hot Beverage Technology

Bean-to-Cup

Term from the vending glossary

Fully automatic coffee machine that grinds whole beans fresh to order and brews. Delivers highest cup quality but requires regular cleaning of the brewing group.

The grinding process takes place immediately before preparation, preserving volatile aroma compounds. Typical bean-to-cup machines in the B2B sector process 100–500 cups per day and feature automatic cleaning programs that run after hours or on demand.

Water hardness is critical for operation: limescale deposits in the thermal block and brewing group reduce performance and increase maintenance costs. Modern premium-class machines (WMF 5000 S+, Franke A800 FM) offer brew pressure regulation (6–9 bar), grind-size adjustment via software and remote diagnostics via integrated telemetry.

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Related terms

Fresh brew systemBrewing method that prepares tea or instant components fresh from powder and hot water — alternative or supplement to bean-to-cup grinding.Milk systemComponent for milk preparation: Instant (powder), Fresh Milk (chilled) or Dual-Milk (both). Determines beverage quality and cleaning effort significantly.Cups per dayKey sizing metric for hot-beverage machines: expected daily throughput. Determines grinder capacity, boiler capacity, and whether a second machine is needed.Brew groupCore component of a fully automatic coffee machine: compresses ground coffee into a puck, forces hot water at defined pressure (9 bar) through it, and automatically ejects the spent grounds. Removable for easy cleaning.ThermoblockFlow-through heating system in coffee machines: water is heated as it passes through a heated metal block, rather than being stored hot in a boiler. Advantage: rapid warm-up time (30–60 s), low standby power consumption.

More terms from Hot Beverage Technology

Super-automatic coffee machine Instant-coffee vending machine Coffee Puck Brew pressure

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