Smart ventilation for Störtebeker Braumanufaktur
Störtebeker Braumanufaktur is gaining an ever-increasing market share. To be able to meet the increasing demand, its production capacities have been expanded. In 2020, its new plant went into operation. The ventilation systems required for the plant were from airinotec – and are an impressive demonstration of how green technology is finding its way into ventilation technology.
A new chapter for a traditional brewery
The success of the traditional Störtebeker brewery made a new investment in its production facilities necessary. A modern bottling and logistics center was built adjacent to the existing company headquarters. A new, energy-efficient bottling plant with a capacity of 40,000 returnable glass bottles per hour was part of the planning, as was a high-bay warehouse with just under 30,000 pallet spaces. In this respect, the responsibility for the sub-works was shared: in addition to the company that built the new hall and the technical manager Krones, it is here that airinotec, from Bayreuth, stepped in.
Ventilation technology is an investment that pays off over the long term as long as it is well thought out and smartly planned. With the project in Stralsund, we have demonstrated this once again.
Green technology in ventilation systems as well
For the project in Stralsund, airinotec assumed overall responsibility for the planning and implementation of the hygienic air technology in the bottling hall, with a volume of approx. 46,000 cubic meters, as well as for the ventilation in the high-bay warehouse, which has a volume of approx. 157,000 cubic meters. The focus here was on also fulfilling the sustainability requirements of Störtebeker Braumanufaktur in the area of the ventilation system. The work on the overall project started in 2018. The construction of the plant for the ventilation system followed one year later. In May 2020, the ventilation system was put into operation.
The high-bay warehouse: one room, three sections
Due to the wide variety of types and the associated high logistical effort, the high-bay warehouse was divided into the three different sections which are not spatially separate. When planning the ventilation concept, it was necessary to ensure a uniform room temperature and room humidity in the central section, where the bottles are stored once they have been packed and filled. Airinotec achieved this goal with a newly-developed, copyrighted and energy-efficient air distribution system. Thanks to this innovative new development, a room temperature of 13 to 20 degrees Celsius can be maintained in the central storage section with a maximum indoor humidity level of 65 percent. No requirements were made concerning the ambient air in the sections located below and above. However, this is where the moisture and odors generated by the used empty bottles in the lower levels are removed. The system operates with a minimum primary energy input and, as far as possible, uses fresh air to cool and dehumidify the warehouse.
The bottling hall: hygienic air technology with energy efficiency
When bottling beverages, ventilation systems ensure a high level of hygiene. As was the case in a number of past projects, airinotec applied the principle of stratified ventilation here. The supply air is introduced close to ground-level and with low turbulence according to the stratified flow principle. The exhaust air is subsequently extracted via load centers such as the pasteurizer, the bottle washer and the pack washer. High performance heat recovery systems in the form of a rotating heat exchanger were also installed in the ventilation systems to efficiently reduce the required demand for primary thermal energy. By using additional bypass dampers, the heat recovery can be completely bypassed where required in order to save drive energy for the ventilators. Moreover, the ventilation systems are not operated constantly, but according to demand. In combination with intelligent airinotec automation, this achieves considerable energy savings.
The block warehouse: ventilation system in dual use
Creative use of the systems can save on investment costs. This was also the case with the project in Stralsund: in cooperation with the responsible fire safety planner, the ventilation system was designed by airinotec for dual use – namely as an intelligent smoke removal system for the block warehouse. The new bottling hall building has two levels. The ground floor is used as block warehouse while the upper floor is designed as a bottling hall. In the event of a fire, the extraction of the resulting smoke in the block warehouse must be made possible, allowing the fire department to access the area. The solution that airinotec developed here uses the existing ventilation system in the bottling hall. This was quickly integrated into the smoke extraction concept of the block warehouse. In the event of a fire, the ventilation system is simply switched over to extract the smoke from the block warehouse and transport it outside.
The outcome: capacity increased, sustainability requirements fulfilled
The new buildings entered operation in 2020: a trend-setting facility which can be considered a model for the brewing industry. Sustainability was the goal, so in addition to the ventilation technology, in the current project, Störtebeker integrated several components for energy and water-saving production: a photovoltaic system, LED lighting, insulation, a heat exchanger, and an energy-saving tunnel pasteurizer. With this setup, Störtebeker and the participating contractors succeeded in significantly reducing the total energy requirement in comparison with conventional systems.
