WARBURGER BREWERY GmbH
Warburg, Germany
Retrofit and automation of the control system in the brewhouse
Warburger Brewery
Warburger Brewery is a medium-sized, East Westphalian brewery with a long tradition. Founded in 1695 by Johannes Jodokus Kohlschein, the brewery was granted brewing rights in 1721 and has been owned by the Kohlschein family for over 300 years. From 1840, the brewery was located at Hauptstrasse 60 in Warburg until brothers Heinrich and Peter Kohlschein acquired the Kuhlemühle and relocated the brewery there in 1983. Many generations later, the Warburger Brewery today is a 10th-generation family business that has become an integral part of the city of Warburg.
Besides beer, Warburger Brewery now also offers gin, advocaat, cola-orange mix, and orange and lemon sodas, thus boasting a wide range of products.
In production, the company focuses on sustainability, environmental protection, resource efficiency and renewable energies. The use of regional organic barley varieties and the conscious consideration of biodiversity are fundamental components, as are the in-house hydropower plants. These are responsible for generating electricity, earning Warburger Brewery the distinction of being the first brewery in Northern Germany to receive the solar beer seal.
7
types of beer
220
hl brewhouse
Project description
Warburger Brewery's brewhouse was built in 1970. Until the commissioning of minglecontrol, operators controlled the entire brewing process via buttons and display instruments at a central control panel. The process is now to be updated to the current state of technology, which is why the Kohlschein family decided to rely on control and process automation using minglecontrol.
It is planned to integrate the brewery's units into minglecontrol in several retrofit phases. Therefore, during an on-site appointment, it was discussed that the brewhouse from the wet milling to the transfer of wort to the whirlpool should be automated first. Furthermore, the customer wanted data exchange to the PLC for wastewater measurements to be recorded and sensors displayed in minglecontrol. This is an essential aspect since the brewery has its own wastewater treatment plant. Continuous monitoring of the pH values and levels of the wastewater collection tanks is therefore also an important aspect of the project.
Special features of the project
Modernisation of hardware
Since the brewhouse's hardware dates back to the 1970s, modernising and automating it was somewhat challenging. The cold and hot water tanks essential for brewing were therefore equipped with sensors for level and temperature measurement in this context. Additionally, the existing energy meter in the brewhouse's switchgear was integrated into minglecontrol via ProfiNet. The current electricity consumption, voltage and power of the brewhouse can thus be displayed and analysed in a chart. An export function allows the displayed chart to be easily exported or saved as a CSV or PDF file.
Integration of the wastewater treatment plant
To stay informed about the happenings in the wastewater treatment plant and also have access to the process values of the wastewater plant from outside the brewery, it was connected to minglecontrol via data coupling. This brings two significant advantages:
- If there is a fault or warning in the wastewater treatment plant, the responsible employee is informed via push notification on their mobile phone.
- The municipal wastewater utility is automatically notified by email about the daily amount of wastewater discharged.
Introduction of the Charts module
To precisely monitor all information, the Charts module was introduced at Warburger Brewery. This allows employees to view trends easily and draw straightforward conclusions from various events, significantly simplifying error analysis.
Incorporation of automation plugins
To simplify or partially automate work steps, Warburger Brewery also relied on various plugins that were connected to minglecontrol. This allows data on the daily amount of wastewater, for example, to be automatically emailed to the municipal wastewater utility.
Would you like to know what else sets minglecontrol apart? We provide you with numerous reasons why it is exactly the right process technology for your production!