Member Article

Demand for upgrades surges as independent brewers invest in self-sufficiency

A brewery equipment specialist is experiencing a surge in demand from independent brewers investing in their facilities to increase their -sufficiency and reduce running costs.

Bradford-based Collective Motion Brewing has received orders from breweries across the UK upgrading and expanding their machinery and technology to eliminate the expense of outsourced services.

Dominic Smith, Director at Collective Motion Brewing, said:

“While the core elements of their operation are carried out in-house, many SMEs rely on external suppliers for some of the costlier processes involved in the day-to-day running of a brewery, from keg washing to carbonation. Having that capability on their own premises enables higher efficiency, lower overheads and faster turnaround. Brewers are increasingly thinking about the long-term and realising that investing now can deliver big savings in the future.”

Lancashire-based Farm Yard Brew Co is one of many independent brewers to identify the potential gains. The company commissioned Collective Motion Brewing to refurbish a second-hand keg washer-filler machine and oversee its installation along with software, pipelines and a steam boiler.

Steve Holmes, Farm Yard Brew Co founder and managing director, said:

“The combined purchase and installation costs of the second-hand machine amounted to around £40,000, saving us between £90,000 to £100,000 on the equivalent costs for a brand-new machine. We used to outsource our keg washing, but doing it in-house is making big savings on running costs. Washing previously cost us £6 per keg and now it’s just £2.50 per keg, not to mention all the time savings involved. We think that the machine will pay for itself within two years.”

Based in Radcliffe, near Bury, Brightside Brewing had similar objectives in mind when they approached Collective Motion Brewing to supply a brand-new kegging machine alongside a refurbished carbonation kit and a refurbished filtration kit.

Lance Friedrich, brewery director at Brightside Brewing, said:

“We’re very happy with the results – it has improved our efficiency and we estimate that it will save us around £50,000 per year in running costs.”

On the other side of the Pennines, Brew York asked Collective Motion Brewing to expand their existing kegging equipment and make some technical adjustments which would enable the brewery to turbo-charge production.

Lee Grabham, co-founder and owner of Brew York, said:

“Collective Motion Brewing implemented the hardware and software changes to add an additional head to our keg washer filler. In doing so they have allowed us to more than double the throughput capability of the machine for both washing and filling. Since the implementation, we have achieved our record ever packaging week as so much more can be achieved in the same time and with the same resources.”

Collective Motion Brewing supply brand-new and second-hand equipment throughout the UK, backed by full technical support and maintenance services

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sam Jones .