ELK GROVE VILLAGE, IL — Rademaker USA, a global provider of industrial equipment solutions for the baking industry, has named Spencer Hendrickson as the company’s new dough technologist for the North American Market.
In this newly developed role, Hendrickson will be responsible for managing equipment testing and demonstrations for the new Rademaker Experience Center, set to open later this year. This includes not only optimizing current equipment needs for existing customers but also discovering new opportunities for product development that can be made using Rademaker equipment.
Hendrickson is a graduate of the Iowa Culinary Institute with additional training from the French Pastry School in Chicago and has more than a decade of professional experience in the baking and pastry fields. Prior to joining Rademaker, he spent eight years as the head pastry chef at Chicago-based Hewn Bakery.
He discovered a love for baked goods — specifically French pastry and other laminated items — through the possibilities that come with baking’s marriage of art and science.
“For me, there’s a great appeal in using such a small amount of ingredients to create a variety of products,” Hendrickson said. “I love the complexity of working with dough and moulding it into different works of art. It’s amazing that we can do unlimited things with just four ingredients.”
During his time at Hewn, Hendrickson created a variety of baked goods with increased production as the bakery added locations, something he will parlay into his work in the Rademaker Experience Center.
“I loved the challenge of ramping up production while keeping quality the same,” he said. “At Rademaker, I’m excited for the challenge of helping customers create thousands of pastries with a uniform look and consistent quality.”
Hendrickson will also use his formal bakery training to assist with R&D efforts.
“Being able to look at the chemistry of dough from a manufacturing and scientific level is very exciting for me,” Hendrickson said. “If a baker has an issue and we can find a technical solution, that’s incredibly satisfying.”
The Rademaker Experience Center — and Hendrickson’s role with its launch — marks a new era for the company as it increases its footprint and service capabilities in North America.
“With Spencer’s background in product development and formulation, he will be able to assist our customers in optimizing their Rademaker equipment while improving product quality and developing new and interesting products,” said Eric Riggle, president of Rademaker USA. “Additionally, he will offer assistance for any operational issues in regard to how products and processes are performing on Rademaker equipment.”
The roughly 50,000-sq.-ft. facility will allow current and potential customers to test and validate products on Rademaker equipment, including the soon-to-launch Radini equipment platform. Bakers will also be able to tap into expanded service, spare parts and training on a variety of other Rademaker equipment at the center.
For more information on Rademaker, the new facility and Radini equipment, visit the company’s website.
