SATISFYING THE THIRST FOR THE PERFECT CUP - The South African Way.
World meet Henlo. The proudly South African premium commercial espresso machine that guarantees each shot pulled, thanks to ingenious design.
Henlo van der Westhuizen, a young entrepreneur with an ambitious vision for the future of coffee, has developed South Africa’s first premium commercial espresso machine that is on par with some of the world leaders in technology. Leveraging Internet of Things (IoT) integration and years-long development effort, Henlo revolutionise how we could enjoy our daily cup of joe from our favourite coffee shop!
Not all cups are equal
Henlo’s passion for the coffee shop experience led him to seek a better way of bringing perfect cups of espresso to customers. He soon noticed that many commercial espresso machines used outdated 80’s technology and were priced too high - so he set out to build something that could deliver superior coffees at an affordable price. With an entrepreneurial business plan in mind, Henlo began searching for venture capitalists alongside his Engineering studies at Stellenbosch University.
Engineer and designer, Henlo van der Westhuizen.
Building Smart Machines
Henlo was challenged to craft an elegant espresso machine that offered the technical features sought after by premium customers without including anything unnecessary. Keeping maintenance costs low for both short- and longterm use was critical. Instead of taking a conventional reverse engineering approach, investors encouraged complete design and innovation that embodied their vision of ‘art and alternativism’.
This posed the unique challenge of creating a masterpiece that, at once, displayed both artistic beauty and technological sophistication. To achieve this goal, Henlo required powerful CAD software to deliver design capabilities along with simulation features such as flow analysis plus electrical routing while keeping R&D costs under control. Finally, the software had to have the ability to create accurate renderings of the customisable final product - ready to be presented.
Henlo realised that design adjustments had far-reaching implications. What is required is the ability to fine-tune components based on improvements in their original designs, ensuring these developments were consistently applied wherever they had been employed.
Another future expansion that the CAD software must deliver on, will include the sharing of parts-files with external parties who might not use the same software.
Custom Designed Henlo Coffee Premium Commercial Espresso Machine
Finding the perfect partner
After assessing his needs, the software package that could deliver all the requirements for this new complicated machine design was SOLIDWORKS Premium 3D CAD. By using this powerful tool, Henlo drastically cut the time it took to create a working prototype. The software’s feature-rich and easy-to-understand interface enabled Henlo to work faster, with prototypes delivered within months instead of years.
Speeding up the design process was done using the integrated solid 3D modelling as well as sheet metal and surface modelling for those more complicated shapes, all available as a baseline with all three SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD packages (Standard, Professional and Premium). By creating drawings of components that update in real-time as design changes occur, wasted time spent on redrawing components or re-adding dimensions was eliminated. Everything updates with a click of a button once the design changes have been made.
Included in the Premium 3D CAD package Henlo was able to utilise the flagship feature – Routing, specifically electrical routing. With the vast library of connectors available to Henlo, as well as the auto-routing feature, he was able to have the wires and cables take the best available route possible according to his design without needing to over-complicate the model. Additionally to this, SOLIDWORKS Routing is able to flatten the electrical wire harness into an easy-to-understand flat pattern, where a Bill of Materials can be added for easy-to-understand manufacturing applications. What is a design without some design verification? Henlo took design verification to the next level, relying on two powerful SOLIDWORKS packages - Simulation and Flow Simulation - to ensure his espresso machine designs were flawless.
By utilising the power of SOLIDWORKS Simulation, Henlo was able to run static analyses of the components, to verify that they met design standards and had no issue facing expected external forces. This usage of a DIGITAL TWIN proved invaluable for onscreen visualisation which increased understanding while lowering prototyping costs; all made even more efficient thanks to SOLIDWORK’s highly intuitive user experience that minimised learning time to focus instead on creativity. Knowing that the machine is not going to collapse under its own weight, or the boilers are not going to explode due to pressure loading can really reduce the stress in the design environment for all involved.
Henlo Coffee Premium Commercial Espresso Machine with touch screen technology
'Helping to ensure that consistent coffee is produced each and every time a shot is pulled from the machine’s perspective, I fully utilised the benefits of SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation.’ says Henlo van der Westhuizen, Managing Director of Henlo Coffee.
‘The coffee flavour profile is ultimately determined by flow rate ... which relies on the precise and controllable pressure and temperature as seen by the coffee grounds, during the full extraction cycle. Not being able to reliably replicate the exact same conditions, runs the risk of over- or underextracted beans which will undermine your intended coffee experience.’ Henlo continue. This means that by using SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation, these values can be simulated to evaluate if the required pressures, temperatures, and flow rates at the correct locations in your process, are achieved. Then making the necessary design adjustments in the same interface and rerunning the study to see its effects. Better yet, the results of the thermal flow simulation study could be used by importing them into the static analysis to determine how the temperature changes are going to affect other components.
With a manufacturable model available, and all pressures, temperatures and flow rates calculated – it was time to market the product. Yes, manufacturing a prototype and hiring a professional photographer works. However, Henlo could harness the power of SOLIDWORKS Visualize Professional and its NVIDIA rendering engine’s ray tracing capabilities with studio lighting environments that create photo-realistic renderings without having to invest in costly production processes.
In addition to this, through the usage of animations, realistic animations of the models can be created. This can show how the model moves in its own environment, as well as create a showcase of the model from all angles in a 360-degree interactive image for the customer to view. Henlo van der Westhuizen, MD of Henlo Coffee, says that they take full advantage of small batch manufacturing to enable greater customisation for their clients. ‘From custom cut designs of 6mm stainless steel legs, all the way to your choice of wood and personalised laser engraving. If a customer wants custom designs, it can be modelled and rendered in Visualize for fast approval before manufacturing commences’. Thanks to the SOLIDWORKS Visualize add-in for SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD, if the design changes, it’s a matter of clicking update and the model updates in SOLIDWORKS Visualize, ready to be rerun with all the previous settings.
What makes Henlo machines unique is the telemetry system which offers a comprehensive evaluation and reporting mechanism for businesses seeking to optimise their coffeemaking operations. Utilising accurate sensors, the technology keeps track of every detail—from electrical data points to physical parameters like temperature or pressure—giving baristas access to immediate feedback on how they can improve upon their espresso preparation techniques. In addition, advanced detection solutions notice even minute losses of both milk and beans that could be incurred due to fraudulence, resulting in an objective report detailing your barista performance under all circumstances. Future use of this data can include a SOLIDWORKS design study to set minimum and maximum goals for a flow simulation study. Using this data will reduce solve time and ensure faster results.
SOLIDWORKS drawing with rendering done in Visualize.
The perfect solution for the perfect cup
The Henlo machines offer a reliable, low-cost solution for longterm operation due to their digitally controlled components with minimal heat loss and whisper-quiet variable speed pumps. With fewer maintenance needs than traditional models, investing in a Henlo machine not only saves money up front but delivers economical long-term operation too.
Henlo keeps its technology current, allowing owners to customise and adjust the machine features according to individual requirements or trends. This makes it possible for users to have a premium espresso machine that is as versatile as they are. Henlo machines also care for roasteries like never before - through accurate profiling against the original baseline for every roast, providing an assurance that each shot will be faithful to the true taste as intended by the artist.
Customised Henlo Coffee Premium Commercial Espresso Machine
The House Blend – Business and Technology
Technology evolves, and so does Henlo by doing regular updates to the user experience and touchscreen interface. It allows Henlo products to stay up-to-date, helping them maintain their value in a dynamic second-hand market. This will protect company profits in upcoming years by limiting competition from outdated models of their own products. As the design evolves, thanks to the SOLIDWORKS parametricbased modelling techniques, Henlo can modify his designs on the fly – ensuring that they update across the board, from the baseline parts all the way up to the main assembly drawings.
The company is harnessing the potential of modern manufacturing and moving away from the traditional machine sales model. By combining rapid prototyping with the help of SOLIDWORKS Premium and a recurring revenue ‘software as a service’(SAAS) model, they have created an eco-system that guarantees excellence. Henlo essentially offers “insurance” of quality cups each time - regardless of volume or type needed for any given occasion. ‘The world of business has changed; consumers now drive decision making, which presents an incredible opportunity for us. We not only help our clients grow their revenue through increased coffee sales and loss management but also create machines with unprecedented dependability and longevity along the way.’ says Henlo van der Westhuizen.
Henlo van der Westhuizen, Managing Director of Henlo Coffee
Local is ‘lekker’
(‘popular slogan promoting South African culture, produce, etc.’ according to the Collins English Dictionary.)
Henlo strives to maintain a commitment to local excellence. This is supported by their 80% primary local manufactured machines. From raw material to finished product, each step in production sees a focus on keeping things close to home. They are also open minded enough to import either directly or through resellers as appropriate. International manufacturers for example provide elements such as touchscreens and pumps. Ultimately they want to achieve a balance between being proudly South African whilst still utilising components that may offer superior performance where necessary.
That being said, the company is making more than just a product; they are building a model to bring its espresso machine production capabilities beyond the local market. They are developing the blueprint for an international presence by keeping supply chains localised and closed looped; prompting them to pursue part-file sharing rather than parts themselves, making SOLIDWORKS an essential part of this process. The sharing of SOLIDWORKS CAD data is easily achieved specifically when looking into the manufacturing industry. SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD allows for neutral file types to be easily transferred by standard means (OneDrive / Google Drive etc.). These neutral file types include but are not limited to STEP, Parasolid or DXF file types. Whereby the DXF files can be exported directly out of SOLIDWORKS from a sheet metal flat pattern.
Developing and refining this blueprint will allow Henlo to grow into an internationally recognised yet locally based brand.
The Future of Henlo Coffee
Henlo is upping its product deployment with a thrilling new development: partnering with celebrated South African coffee maestro Craig Charity to engineer an intuitive grinder that syncs intelligently and automatically adjusts grind size according to machine feedback. Plus, they are pioneering the ultimate compact unit for espresso aficionados working in small establishments or within their own homes. The company seeks to remain nimble in adapting new technology while upholding its principles of providing premium features, the right-to-repair and products built for longevity. Rather than relying solely on existing intellectual property, they are poised to rapidly create, grow, and prosper with help from SOLIDWORKS software at their side.
Visit Henlo Coffee HERE
Watch Henlo van der Westhuizen discuss his journey using SOLIDWORKS:
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