I roast in house on a Diedrich IR-12
a. Is it really that hard
First you need to set aside time dedicated to roasting. Then, it's as easy or as hard as you want it to be. Every step from green bean selection, profile development, espresso blend, to roasting consistency can be easy or hard. Obviously the more attention you put in, the better the end results will be. You can learn the basic operation, buy from one or two bean suppliers, pop the beans into the roaster, roast at a reasonable temperature for 12 - 18 minutes, dump them into the cooling tray, and you are ready for the next batch. If you don't burn or bake the beans, as long as you keep up with maintenance on your roaster, chances are you will have better beans by virtue of having fresher beans. If you choose to do it the hard way, then it is constantly roasting and tasting samples, constantly trying different roasting method, it's a never ending learning process.
b. What is the approximate start up cost to do this
You need to know what size roaster you will need. You need to know if your local code requires you to install afterburner. Even if you are not require to have one, you might one to set money and space aside for one just in case you have un-happy neighbors. If your exhaust chimney needs to go up through multiple floors, it can add up this cost really fast. Do you need to pipe gas line in to the building? Make sure you have enough BTU for the roaster and the afterburner. A small in house roaster such as Diedrich IR-3 or San Franciscan SF-6LB costs more than $8K, and their afterburner is about $6K. Going up in size to 12 Kg roaster, you are looking at $20K plus $10K for an afterburner. You can buy used, but set aside money for repair. Especially if you are not mechanically handy, like me
c. Do you save money roasting your own beans
Yes and no. If your batch is small, then your labor cost will eat into your saving. But even if you roast in very small batches, you can figure at least a saving of a dollar a pound, but two dollars a pound is probably more realistic. If you know the cost of setting up a roasting operation, then it's a matter of figuring out how many pounds you use a year, and multiply that by two dollars a pound. If you can recover your cost in two year or less then from a financial point of view, it is a worthwhile investment. However, you should not decide to roast or not base on money saved. You should roast because you want to have absolute control over roasting style, quality, and freshness. In another word, you should roast because of your desire for having better coffee. Money saved is a bonus, albeit a nice bonus.
d. Did you draw a new crowd because of this
Yes. But the expectation is also higher. If the end result is equal to or better than your current coffee, then business will increase.
Here are drum roaster makers and used drum dealers links for you to look at:
http://www.coffeeper.com/
http://www.diedrichroasters.com/
http://www.primoroasting.com/index.cfm
http://renegaderoasters.com/
http://www.usroastercorp.com/index.htm
http://ambexroasters.com/index.html
http://www.probatburns.com/
http://www.baltcoffee.com/catalog/page. ... 525d5ee22f
http://www.roastersexchange.com/
http://www.coffeetec.com/
Good luck
