Manufacturers and operators of machinery and equipment for the brewing industry must develop a highly integrated approach to energy and media efficiency, starting from the delivery of raw materials, auxiliaries and resources through optimizing mashing and cooking processes, using compressed air, treating wastewater and developing sanitation systems. Reasonable standards governing operations and design processes are most needed in these scenarios.
During the last five years, the 1,300 breweries in Germany have succeeded in cutting their energy consumption by an average of 11 percent. Today, breweries need only 3 to 5 liters of water to produce 1 liter of beer instead of 8 liters as in the past. In addition, the number of reusable bottles accounts for about 85 percent in the market. All of this sounds quite promising; however, in view of constantly rising energy and raw material costs, further efforts are needed to stay competitive now and in the future. Improved efficiency is a long-term goal, and potential savings exist even in companies that already show good performance in this area. Savings can be hidden in plant components or logistics and also concern energy carriers such as gas or compressed air. In this context, life-cycle assessment also must be taken into account.