As the two steam technology-based brands in Aga Foodservice Equipment's portfolio of companies, Stellar Steam and Eloma combi ovens share many features that set them apart from the competition.

    One notable feature is each company's use of boilerless steaming designs, which reduce utility costs while improving reliability. According to Mitch Cohen, vice president of cooking systems sales for Aga Foodservice Equipment's "hot side" companies, "Boilerless steamers and combi ovens are more reliable than their boiler-equipped counterparts, which are more labor-intensive to maintain and often suffer expensive breakdowns.

    "While other manufacturers of boilerless steam equipment can make similar claims, Eloma and Stellar back-up their performance, offering exclusive standard two-year parts and labor warranties for all their products," said Cohen.

    In addition to being more reliable, Eloma and Stellar's boilerless designs help to reduce utility costs dramatically. "Units from Stellar Steamer," said Cohen, "need only five to six gallons of water per hour. Boiler-equipped steamers with similar cooking capacities, on the other hand, can require 10-times as much water. Such huge reductions mean that Stellar and Eloma decrease incoming water costs, minimize the amount of energy needed to heat that water and cut sewage fees for outgoing water."

    Eloma and Stellar can save end-users even more money with their separately patented heat-exchanger systems. Each unit from these companies is equipped with a system that exposes incoming cold water and outgoing hot condensate to each other. Through this exposure, cold water is warmed and, therefore, requires less energy to be turned into steam. At the same time, outgoing hot water is cooled, eliminating the need to bring its temperature down by diluting it with additional incoming water before it is drained. This, again, provides operators and specifiers with reduced water and sewage costs.

    In addition to reliability and cost savings, Eloma and Stellar provide design and operational features that differentiate them from competing brands of equipment. For Eloma, high functionality combined with user-friendly controls are its most distinguishing characteristics. "Operators have precise control of the environment inside Eloma combi ovens' cooking chambers, allowing them to bake, steam, roast and even char grill. Utilizing this functionality is made simple," said Cohen, "through Eloma combis' intuitive interface that relies on visual cues much like most popular computer operating systems."

    In the case of Stellar, steamers' fabrication materials are themselves the main differentiator. While most steamers have stainless-steel interior cooking chambers, Stellar's cooking chambers are made of cast aluminum, which holds heat far longer than stainless steel. This allows Stellar steamers to reach temperatures of up to 230°F, and ensures that every bit of steam is used to cook food.

    "Since the walls and ceiling of Stellar's cooking chambers retain heat so well, steam does not condense on them," explained Cohen. "Instead, it condenses on the food itself, meaning that none of the cooking energy in that steam is wasted."

    Better reliability, reduced energy and water use, lower drainage fees, higher functionality: these are the qualities that distinguish Stellar Steam and Eloma combi ovens from their competition.