Building a brewery is no easy feat. It takes lots of careful planning, both in the design and the business aspect that comes along with a brewery. While there are many different important components to keep in mind when building a brewery, some things stand out from the rest.
Essential Parts to Building a Brewery
Here are 7 of the critical aspects that you need to consider for your new brewery.
1. A Central Location
Location is key for any business, including a brewery. For one, you want to be close to your resources like water. You also want to be near emergency services, like the police and fire department, in case of any serious incidents. Ideally, you also want to be easily accessible not just to emergency services, but to your employees as well.
By choosing a central location, you ensure ingredients, people, and products will all have to travel less. Which, in turn, helps you reduce the number of greenhouse gasses associated with your brewery, making you more environmentally conscious.
2. A Proper Layout
Second to the location is the layout of your facility. When setting up a new brewery, you want to really take the time and plan the best layout possible. Consider the order of steps required in brewing beer, and use that as a starting point.
If you set up your brewery in the order of brewing sequence, workers will not have to run all over the facility to get to the right area. This will not only help to eliminate confusion, but it will also help ensure that workers do not miss any steps in the whole brewing process. Following this method of setup will also help keep everything cleaner and more organized, and prevent serious accidents from occurring.
3. High-Quality Equipment
What is a brewery without the right equipment? If you are serious about building a brewery, then you need to invest in high-quality brewing equipment.
Kettles, boilers, fermentation tanks, storage tanks, kegs, bottling equipment, and refrigeration units are just a few of the pieces of equipment every brewery needs. The list is long and the equipment isn't cheap, but this isn't an area where you can afford to be stingy. Just like you want high-quality ingredients, you want the best equipment you can afford. That way, you can trust it to work safely and efficiently, without using too much energy or the fear of it breaking down during brewing.
4. The Right Kind of Flooring
Flooring is an area often overlooked in all kinds of facilities. But, when it comes to how to build a brewery, choosing the right kind of flooring is absolutely essential. The FDA and USDA have specific rules and regulations that food and beverage facilities are required to abide by to ensure safe and hygienic facilities. Floors in breweries should be non-porous, with antimicrobial properties that make them resistant to things like bacteria and other harmful organisms.
Popular floor coating options in beverage facilities like breweries include epoxy, urethane, methyl methacrylate, and metallic epoxy.
5. A Good Drainage System
Another important step you cannot skip when building a brewery is choosing an efficient drainage system. A drainage system is a critical part of any facility, especially breweries, where you continuously deal with liquids. They help with the management of fluid waste, cleaning, and maintaining a sanitary facility.
While there are many drainage options, the superior choice is the Slot Drain System. Slot Drain is an innovative type of trench drain that has an opening so small, it is barely noticeable and requires no grate. This system has a Class F load capacity, making it strong enough to work efficiently in an airport hangar without breaking. Furthermore, because there is no grate, it is level with the floor, making it ADA compliant and eliminating the risk of tripping over the system.
The most notable features of Slot Drain include the food-grade stainless steel design that makes it bacteria- and corrosion-resistant, its ability to handle extreme temperatures, and how easy it is to clean and maintain.
6.A Qualified Team
You can have a perfectly designed facility, with all of the state-of-the-art equipment and drainage system possible, but it will mean nothing without the right team to back you.
When you build a brewery, you want to take the time and hire the best team you possibly can. Everyone involved in the brewery should be knowledgeable and experienced in the brewing process and, ideally, running a business. This will ensure that you have responsible, reliable people working with your vision of success, rather than slowing you down or impeding you.
7. A Detailed Hygiene Policy
Finally, there is no more important detail to consider when building a brewery as a detailed hygiene policy.
A hygiene policy for a brewery should include a designated, sanitary hand-washing station, protective clothing, the proper handling and storage of ingredients and products, as well as the entire cleaning process, to name just a few of the many critical areas. By creating, implementing, and enforcing these rules, you ensure you are following the FDA and USDA guidelines and creating a safe, healthy brewing facility that will not run the risk of contamination or sanitation issues. Therefore, not only will your product and ingredients remain safe, but your workers and reputation as well.
There are many things to keep in mind when it comes to building a brewery. In some ways, every single detail can play a crucial role in the success or failure of your facility. However, these 7 areas are probably the most critical to keep in mind and focus on, as they are the foundation for any good, well-functioning facility. By ensuring these 7 factors are addressed initially, you will be well on your way to having a successful brewery.
