Dean Jones, Brewmaster of Genesee Brewing Company’s “Pilot Brewery” has more than 31 years’ experience and knows a thing or two about craft brewing. Unlike Genesee’s high-volume plant, the Pilot Brewery makes 20-barrel batches that are mostly sold right at the Genesee Brew House and typically sell out faster than they can be replaced.
Jones says that craft beer people are old school and know if they don’t get the product they ordered. “Sure, craft brewers can experiment,” says Jones, “But we can’t build brand loyalty if we don’t ensure consistent products.”
A Big Part of Consistency is Controlling Tiny Changes in Temperature
When Dean joined the Pilot Brewery in 2012 there was no automatic temperature monitoring system in place. They physically looked at the thermometer upstairs throughout each shift and adjusted right on the machine. Even after moving the readout into Dean’s office, there was still a 12-hour gap every night when temperatures weren’t monitored. That all changed in one weekend.
Dean lost four batches of beer, more than $100,000 worth of product, before he knew anything was wrong. The glycol chiller on the roof went down after everyone left on Friday, and it took until Monday morning to know that the product in all five fermenters attached to that chiller had risen by 10 degrees. With the heat from fermentation not getting cooled, four out of five of the batches were ruined. Dean knew right then he needed a remote monitoring system to prevent that from happening again.
The Perfect Solution Can Be Right Around the Corner. Literally.
Dean called Tel-Tru Temperature Solutions across the street and asked if they had a remote monitoring system that would meet Genesee’s needs. His sales rep said they had an existing product and others in the works that they could adjust for a brewing application to start developing the ideal solution.
The product Dean’s team helped bring to market is Tel-Tru’s Remo-Tel® Smart Temperature Monitoring System. After replacing the original glycol chiller, the new chiller and the backup both run with Remo-Tel installed. The whole system is connected to Dean’s phone and computer, so he gets a text, phone call, or email whenever any temperature parameters go out of spec or if the power goes out. Genesee knows in real time that their product is safe, and Dean can sleep better every night.
Sometimes ROI Speaks for Itself
Dean understands that while high-volume production operations have built-in temperature monitoring, smaller systems for craft breweries often don’t include them to keep costs down. “The system we had may have saved us a couple thousand upfront by forgoing automatic monitoring, but it cost us $120K in one weekend. With the Remo-Tel craft breweries can retrofit their systems to have the same functionality as the big guys for a fraction of the price.”
READ MORE: Cold Space & Glycol Management Tips
This isn’t Dean’s first experience with Tel-Tru. Genesee uses Tel-Tru digital thermometers and the Tel-Tru Check-Set Calibrator. Dean also shares his experience with his peers who attend local master brewer’s meetings. Members even come to him sometimes to calibrate their thermometers. “Some of their thermometers are off by as much as 15 degrees. I politely tell them that if they used Tel-Tru, they’d be all set too.”
The Remo-Tel system wirelessly automates monitoring and data collection which can be accessed 24/7/365 using an online dashboard. You can save time, improve efficiency and better ensure the quality of your product.
Learn more at www.teltru.com.
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