Based just thirty miles east of Edinburgh in the coastal town of Dunbar, Belhaven Brewery is the largest regional brewer in Scotland. From its historic brewery it produces a portfolio of branded beers that it has sold since its formation in 1719.
Until recently Belhaven relied on a Clean in Place (CIP) system that returned cleaning solution from bright beer holding tanks via a flow plate to the CIP feed tank during the routine cleaning process. The CIP solution struggled with the furthest tanks, some 20m away. The pump became air locked and would not empty the tank. The pump was noisy and exerted a lot of vibration and stress on the pipe work installation, contributing to high maintenance and operating costs.
To overcome these problems Grundfos distributors in Scotland, Barr + Wray, leaders in fluid handling, filtration and water treatment provided a Grundfos Sipla self-priming, liquid ring, scavenge pump, which has excellent suction and the ability to pump entrained air without air locking. Since its installation the pump has proven itself to scavenge from all tanks to Belhaven’s satisfaction.
Ronnie Muir, Engineering Manager at Belhaven Brewery, commented: “Since the Grundfos system has been installed, we have seen improvements in; scavenge ability, shorter CIP times, reduced cost, improved tank cleaning, lower noise levels, less vibration and pipe work stresses and lower life cycle cost. This solution has solved a number of problems that we have had for several years.”