Smart solution from GEA reduces time for reconfiguring complex filling equipment and format changeover
GEA will be presenting its multi-functional processing technology for the beverage industry at Hall 7 at this year’s BrauBeviale, which will be taking place from 12-14 November at Exhibition Centre Nuremberg, Germany. With a theme “Refreshingly Different”, GEA will display the GEA Visitron Filler ALL-IN-ONE, which can fill bottles, cans and PET containers on a single filter. BrauBeviale in Nuremberg is a short stopover for the filler below it continues its way to Australia – where GEA customer, Moon Dog Craft Brewery, will integrate the ultra-flexible filler into its new plant.
Moon Dog Craft Brewery is an independent, Australian-owned and fast approaching its 10th birthday. With its origins starting in the Melbourne suburb of Abbotsford, Moon Dog has now outgrown that facility, and is on the move to Preston, where the team has just opened a 12,000m2 facility. The site will house a 725-person venue with a large new brewing facility about to be commissioned, which will allow them to produce over 10 million litres per year. Moon Dog is known for pushing the limits with beer styles and flavours, and the new faclity with a designated souring kettle will allow them to continue to diversify and grow marketshare within Australia and globally. Seeing the need to bring more efficiency into its processes, Moon Dog ordered a GEA Visitron Filler ALL-IN-ONE in August 2019, as well as a water deaeration system VARIDOX, a DICAR-B carbonation system, an ECO-FLASH pasteuriser and a Plug & Win 100 centrifuge from the technology group.
Sustainable bottling and canning
Breweries are particularly interested in GEA VIPOLL filling equipment because this sector typically has the highest demand for glass bottles and cans. Customers benefit from GEA’s commitment to support and improve production processes end-to-end, from brewing to bottling and storage. Likewise, GEA offers many solutions to help breweries lower their CO2 emissions, which is critical for help this high-consumption sector meet the ambitious climate protection goals it has set for itself. Highly efficient manufacturing as well as responsible packaging methods are therefore key, which means glass containers and cans will play an even greater role in global environmental strategies; refillable bottles will become a cornerstone of reuse initiatives and cans a valuable recyclable material.
One for all: ALL-IN-ONE
GEA VIPOLL developed the ALL-IN-ONE monoblock filler as a direct response to sustainability requirements, and is an example of just how lean and flexible filling solutions can be: the compact ALL-IN-ONE rinses, fills and caps products all within a small production footprint. Its process design saves time during filling and format changeovers; within a matter of minutes, the machine can switch to manage different products and container formats. This is made possible by the ALL-IN-ONE’s multi-functional elements: the rinser is equipped with universal grippers; the filler uses an electro-pneumatic filling value and a single capping turret is able to accomodate different closure types.
“We chose GEA because the company has a great reputation for manufacturing high-quality machines. The ALL-IN-ONE filler allows us to operate a single filling line for both cans and bottles with quick changeover between formats. This gives us benefits in terms of floor space utilisation, and simplicity in maintenance and operation,” said Josh Uljans, co-founder and CEO of Moon Day Craft Brewery.
“The ALL-IN-ONE’s multi-functional system allows for flexibilty. It can be used to fill glass, can and PET containers; handle different formats and seal them with diverse cap types; can fill carbonated or still drinks, using hot or cold fill method,” added Jakob Salamun, sales manager at GEA VIPOLL.
