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What makes a good office coffee machine? There has been a lot of talk, surveys and polls about the good and bad aspects of having a coffee machine in the office. While we understand there are always cons, we believe the pros truly outweigh them when it comes to coffee at work. So, assuming you are one of those managers who have decided to take the plunge and get a coffee machine for your office, winning over the hearts of all your employees instantly, what should you look for? Are some things more important than others? Did you consider that not everyone likes to froth milk? Here’s a list of points that might help you make this ever important decision!

1. Is it easy to use?

This can be a loaded question when it comes to coffee machines .For the coffee connoisseurs out there a coffee machine that is too easy to use simply doesn’t make their cut. However when considering a coffee machine for use in an office you need to factor in the probability of most people having never used a coffee machine before. We don’t suggest you ask your favourite local café for advice either. What you need is a user-friendly automatic coffee machine, unless you know for a fact that there are trained baristas among you. Automatic coffee machines have come light years in terms of brewing ability, grinding and milk-frothing. For an office space that needs great coffee on-tap we believe automatic is the way to go.

2. Does it have a manual milk-frothing option?

Believe it or not, some people take their milk extremely seriously. Have you ever been out for coffee with someone who likes their coffee boiling hot and always sends it back because it’s never quite hot enough? Despite explaining to them over and over again that coffee is not supposed to be consumed boiling hot, they just don’t listen. Well, these are the people that are very fussy bout frothing their own milk. The best way to keep the whole office happy is to consider an automatic coffee machine that has an automatic milk-frother which can be switched to manual. Let’s face it- there’s no point in getting an office coffee machine that actually angers some of your staff- and when people can’t get their milk at the exact temperature they prefer they get very angry!

3. Is it easy to clean?

Out of all the questions to consider, this one is probably the make-or break question. If you consider a coffee machine that is wiz-bang gorgeous, shiny and sleek, yet comes with a whole lot of removable parts that need to be removed and put back on a daily basis, you are going to have a health hazard on your hands. To try and get someone or some people to volunteer to clean the coffee machine every day will be like pulling teeth once the novelty wears off. This is another reason nwhy we feel the automatic coffee machine is a no-brainer for offices. Most of them have a self-cleaning facility that only requires surface cleaning on most days. Whichever coffee machine you buy dregs will have to be emptied at least once a day. For larger offices we recommend a plumbed in machine so you don’t have to worry about refilling the water tank. An office coffee machine need not be an extra worry or hassle. With the standard of automatic coffee machines these days a coffee machine is as easy to look after as any other appliance.

4. Does it grind its own beans?

You may have been advised that all good coffee machines do not come with internal grinders. We can understand where this line of thinking comes from and where it is going. However, it is for your office that you are considering this machine and not your own café. So unless you have someone in the office who will take responsibility for the grinder, get a machine that does it for you. Coffee machines can now be perfectly adjusted so that your coffee beans are ground to perfection every time. If you introduce a stand-alone grinder you introduce trouble- people arguing over which size is best, constantly changing the setting. This leads to weak coffee! You don’t want that. Take our advice and get an internal grinder with your office coffee machine.

5. Does it look good?

As the last point of consideration, this one is in no means the least important. We do ask that you tread very carefully when looking at coffee machines because all that glitters is certainly not gold. There are lots of shiny coffee machines out there, chrome or chrome wanna-be, that apparently do it better. They don’t. the most average looking coffee machine is actually our mot popular office coffee machine! People go ahead and try others, but time after time come back to the one that doesn’t look s smashing yet achieves better results every time. Again, the machine is for your office kitchenette not your café or your home. You need it to make good coffee, easily and quickly. You need it to be reliable and hard working. While we are huge fans of the glamorous vintage coffee machines out there , colourful and amazing – we remind people that when it comes to an office coffee machine you need to think practically.

If you have any tips of your own to add to this list please let us know! You can email us at info@7gramscoffee.com.au