A pattern former for assembling wrapped bakery products into predetermined patterns includes a vacuum turntable comprising a perforated plate which is driven by a belt extending around the periphery of the vacuum turntable and actuated by a motor. The firmness of the first and second sheets differ, so that by putting one sheet face up on the bed one level of firmness is achieved, and by reversing the topper and putting the other sheet face up another level of firmness is achieved. The display drive unit is also selectively inactivated and activated under control of the first processing unit to reduce power consumption in the display unit. To allow any water that has penetrated to flow away, the housing is mounted vertically, with the pressure-relief device disposed at the bottom. Threshold adjustments to the adjustable threshold circuit may be performed locally at the meter site or remotely from a station.