Brewing a sustainable future: How automation can reduce your brewery’s environmental impact.
Though the craft beer industry has grown immensely over the past decade, its success is coupled with significant challenges, particularly with regards to skyrocketing energy costs and growing ESG responsibilities. Water usage, energy consumption, and waste generation are all areas where breweries can strive for greater sustainability.
The good news is—innovative and automated brewing technology is helping breweries work towards a more sustainable future. How? Automation is revolutionising the brewing process by taking the guesswork out of it. These systems constantly monitor and optimise brewing parameters, leading to a significant decrease in energy consumption. This translates to a smaller carbon footprint and lower utility bills for breweries.
For example, Frigid.Cloud’s pulse chilling optimises heat transfer and improves the efficiency of compressor operation in glycol chillers, and ultimately reduces energy usage. Solar thermal storage, on the other hand, harnesses renewable energy by integrating solar panels to store energy in the thermal mass of fermenters and glycol holding tanks, reducing reliance on fossil fuels and lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
Smiley Brewing in Melbourne is the perfect example of the impact that automation can have. By implementing Frigid.Cloud’s pulse cooling module, they’ve slashed their daily energy consumption by 30 kWh. This translates to an annual reduction of 5.5 tons of carbon emissions–that’s roughly equivalent to taking an average passenger car off the road for a year.
Between October and November, their electricity consumption decreased by an average of 30.1 kilowatts, dropping down to 85.2 kilowatts between February and March. This reduction in power usage translates to an estimated monthly cost saving of around $340.
As the craft beer industry continues to navigate an ever-changing landscape, automation and sustainable brewing practices will undoubtedly play a key role in ensuring a brighter future for both brewers and our planet.