Beer on tap is filled using Siemens technology
17 January 2018
The Störtebeker brewery based in Germany brews 17 traditional and modern beer varieties. These beers are served on tap in various venues and can also be taken away in a growler to enjoy that freshly-tapped taste at home. The growler filling station from Austria uses technology supplied by Siemens that is intelligently networked to provide a filling plant with high availability, consistently designed for digitalisation.
‘Eis-Lager’ and ‘Polar-Weizen’ are just two of the total of 17 beer varieties produced by the Störtebeker brewery. The brewery uses handed-down recipes which it combines with new ideas, and its beers sell right across Germany. Probably the best-known A-list name among its clientele is the new Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg, affectionately dubbed the “Elphi”. Alongside the large restaurant on the 5th floor, also a flagship venue for the brewery is the “Taste&Shop” restaurant on the 6th floor, where punters can sample the entire range of 17 varieties. The beers continue to be brewed in compliance with the German purity law, and are available in-flavours ranging from lemony fresh to chocolate – and all without using additives. Anyone who feels like continuing the party at home can have their favourite beer type tapped into brown growlers, take-home bottles holding 0.85L with an integrated carry handle. The filling plant for these large, re-sealable glass bottles comes from Austria and is automated using Simatic from Siemens.
Reliable process control
“What matters to us is a rugged design and availability – and Siemens provides both of these. The worldwide availability of Simatic components and the remote diagnostic capability saves us travelling long distances if a customer should experience a fault,” says Alfred Gruber, CEO of the Austrian machine builder. The filling machine is operated using a Simatic HMI KP300 Basic Panel. The multiple-stage process is controlled by a Simatic S7-1200 controller – from correct cleaning and preparation of the growlers and the addition of carbon dioxide to ensure the beer doesn’t go flat in the bottle, through to the filling process itself. And finally, an inductive flow meter ensures that every growler is filled with no more and no less than 0.85 litres.
Brewing beer with Industry 4.0
“In future, we’ll be implementing the Industry 4.0 vision in all our plants,” says Jens Reineke, Master Brewer and qualified beer sommelier at the Störtebeker brewery. He quotes an example: “In terms of energy, many plant subsystems have now been optimised to such a degree that there’s only scope left for minimal savings. It’s by taking an overall view of the energy data and smart networking the entire operation that it’s possible to develop concepts which really make a difference.” And the Siemens solution has met with the enthusiastic approval of the beer brewers all along the line – also due to its consistent approach. “Data consistency is the basis of a digital enterprise, that’s just easier to implement with a cohesive system.”
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