Brewery's Water, Energy Conservation Plan Results in Quick Payback

A leading brewery set forth an expansion and resource conservation plan to boost production capacity to meet demands and to also expand in the U.S. market. Recognizing the criticality of cost control in today’s market, the brewery needed a plan to identify and optimize energy and resource usage where possible.

Through consulting with Endress+Hauser for advice regarding best practices and best-fit measurement solutions, the brewery was able to realize a nine-month return on a $1 million investment. Endress+Hauser was able to help the brewery implement an energy and water conservation plan to help identify and optimize energy and resource usage wherever possible. This allowed the brewery to meet its overall goal to boost production capacity and expand in the U.S.

Promag H Electromagnetic flow meter.

Daily monitoring and assessing of the brewery’s water, compressor usage, CO₂ recovery, fuel oil and electrical power allowed the management team to detect anomalies in order to investigate and determine the corrective action to take. By breaking down the resource conservation initiative into sections, the brewery was able to gain a more transparent overview of its entire process while still identifying individual conservation opportunities.

Endress+Hauser recommended a full Energy Management Resource Conservation Plan to monitor usage of water, air, gas, electricity and steam (WAGES monitoring). Measurement solutions ranged from simple temperature and pressure to more advanced flow computers calculating usage of boilers and steam in real time.

The Promag H Electromagnetic flow meter was applied at strategic points throughout the brewing process to identify water usage and loss.

Using the Promag electromagnetic flow meter, the client was able to monitor water usage and identify water/beer loss. Applied at strategic points throughout the brewing process, the flow meter helped achieve clear mass balance of the plant and monitor and reduce wastewater released to the municipality.

Additional instrumentation and equipment was used to monitor pressure and temperature. By capturing the CO₂ generated during the brewing process, the brewery was able to reduce its carbon footprint; reduce compressor usage, allowing cycling of three compressors; monitor leaks and usage through measuring pressure; and measure temperature to identify losses.

The Promass Coriolis mass flow meter was installed on the incoming fuel oil line to improve accuracy in measurement. The higher accuracy in readings resulted in reduced fuel oil costs.

Finally, the RMC621 flow and energy computer was installed to compare measured values from electricity and compressed air flow rates and usage. The RMC621 calculates the energy usage of boilers and steam in real-time BTUs, ensuring leaks are immediately identified and sealed.

With Endress+Hauser, water usage costs were reduced by 28 percent, from $1 million/year to $720K/year, and the amount of wastewater released to the municipality also decreased. The brewery was able to reduce its carbon footprint and reported a savings of $2 million/year from CO₂ recovery. Compressed air was reduced by more than 15 percent, allowing cycling of three compressors verses all three constantly running at full capacity. Additionally, fuel oil costs were reduced by $2,800/month, for a total of approximately $34K/year.

Endress+Hauser began U.S. operations in 1970, and is now one of the largest instrument manufacturers in the country. For more information, visit www.us.endress.com.