2017 Craft Brewers Conference

Sealed Air delivers faster ROI for craft brewers with expanded hygiene and processing needs

By Mary Ellen Shoup

- Last updated on GMT

SealedAir's AirCheck service can help craft brewers document compressed air leaks inside their brewery. ©iStock/AGL_Photography
SealedAir's AirCheck service can help craft brewers document compressed air leaks inside their brewery. ©iStock/AGL_Photography

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Sealed Air has expanded its Diversey Knowledge-based Services for craft brewers looking to drive down water or energy use and increase productivity while seeing a return on investment (ROI). 

“Our sector specialists have been actually doing this for many years, but we’ve now created a formal, consistent approach in all the regions we service,”​ Troy Matteotti, sector marketing director for brewing and beverage at Sealed Air Food Care, told BeverageDaily at the Craft Brewers Conference in Washington, D.C. 

The services encapsulated in Diversey include AirCheck, which helps address leaks in a compressed air system, AquaCheck, which focuses on optimizing water and energy use, and CIPTEC, which offers precise Clean-in-Place (CIP) monitoring so CIP cycles can be shortened.

Air: The ‘arch-nemesis’ to brewing

On average, 20% to 30% of compressed air is lost to leaks, the US Department of Energy has estimated, which adds to a brewery’s energy costs and puts increased pressure on its generation system.

“Air is probably one of the largest wastages of energy,”​ Matteotti said. “The only way that you would detect it, is if the plant is not in operation.”

Sealed Air’s AirCheck is able to identify and document compressed air leaks in a facility using ultrasound indicators so brewers can target and fix leaks right away.

The system is targeted at not just established brewers but smaller brewers because their ROI usually takes less than a year, according to Matteotti.

“It may seem very expensive, but if you look at the AirCheck, you’re looking at about $2,000 and [smaller brewers] can probably get a return on investment in about a month,”​ he said.

Expanding CIPTEC into the brewery

In July 2016, Sealed Air acquired TTS-CIPTEC, which specializes in cleaning-in-place (CIP) systems through remote monitoring capabilities and predictive analytics services for industrial use, primarily in the dairy industry, according to Matteotti.

CIP systems help ensure the cleanliness of food and beverage systems, but the majority of these sanitation systems are over-cleaning by 50%, according to Sealed Air. CIPTEC uses an optic sensor to detect where the chemical is and lets the brewery know if its cleaning effectively.

“It’s been proven in the dairy industry, which has a higher standard for cleanliness, and now we’re looking at expanding this into the brewing industry and there’s a lot of interest,” ​he said. 

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