The hard life of being barista

29/06/2015 11:58:00

The hard life of being barista

Most bars are in Italy open between 05:00 and 06:00 a.m. for customers, who start work early.
Baristas are often required to work very long shifts and this alone creates pressure that should not be underestimated.
Baristas are also exposed to extremely varied working paces. From peak time to almost no activity during the not so busy hours. Baristas must keep up their working method and discipline even during the busiest hours, otherwise the quality of the espresso coffee becomes significantly worse. When the physical effort is analyzed, it can be noticed that the following actions require a repeated and unneglectable effort:

  • Coffee tamping (about 20 kg) for each coffee
  • Filter door closing (about 5 kg) for each coffee.
  • After brew filter brewing  (about 10 kg) for each coffee.
  • Filter/filter holder pounding 2-3 times on the knock box after each extraction. In this case, it is not so      much the physical effort as the repeated trauma of the hand and the wrist

 

 

Knock box, the new electrical system
The traditional solution to dispose of the coffee ground by the filter is knocking the filter holder 2 or 3 times on a counter or built-in knock box.

We recommend choosing the electrical solution Pro-Fondi
Pro-Fondi ensures the following advantages:
- It completely eliminates the repeated hand trauma.
- No more annoying noise involved, due to box knocking.
- Excellent cleaning of filter, filter holder and working surface.
- Perfect hygiene and odourless collection of coffee pucks

Our advice is, if you have the vicinity to utilize the Pro-Fondi, it is useful to have and your baristas will be very grateful.

Ground coffee tamping in the filter holder
The right operational procedure is that of lightly tamping the first time (approx. 5 kg pressure) and proceed with a second and final tamping with a 20 kg pressure. This effort is repetitive for each coffee.

We recommend a pre-set, lever-equipped dynamometric tamper.
In this way, the operator undergoes less strain and the tamping is constant for every cup of coffee.
Without a doubt, the job of the barista is a more physical job than many people think.
The repetition of efforts involves the same limbs (arm, left or right hand). This is the main reason for the most frequent barista issues. Extremely painful inflammations to tendons combined with long periods of inability to work.
The shrewd and farsighted manager knows that investing in equipment that decreases staff strains is an asset in the long run. He will be able to count on more motivated staff, always producing constant coffee quality, even in peak times and will decrease absence through sick leave.
This is our heartfelt advice and we hope you will follow it.

Happy Easter from REPA!
Our offices and warehouse will be closed during the Easter weekend and on Monday, April 1. We will be back open for you as usual on Tuesday, April 2.