A key part of growth for breweries now lies in the digital world. Graduating from quick pen and paper calculations, many breweries are opting to take the time and some money to be able to dig much more in-depth with simple (and sometimes not-so-simple) computer software to dig into numbers both in production and logistics.
Being creative and “hands-on” people, Sixpoint Brewery has created incredibly powerful tools that not only make its jobs easier but make the Brooklyn, New York brewery better at what it does.
With forecasting in particular, Adam Gordon, the Director of Brewing Operations explained to Brewer that he takes wholesaler depletion data — in combination with shipping data — over the last year and half and “segments the hell of out of it.”
“[We are] analyzing wholesaler trends, seasonality, and comparative trends to give us the best possible prediction of how much beer we need to make,” he said. ”We’ve also developed tools for yield tracking that allow us to assess losses for different steps over time, making the projected yields we use for our forecasting model more accurate the more we brew.”
Those are just two of a number of tools the brewery has created on its own.
Patrick Broderick, North Coast Brewing Company Brewmaster said that the brewery is just beginning to implement newer technology with some accounting software.
“That may eventually allow us to do some predictive analytics,” he said. ”That software would allow us to go completely digital and maximize efficiencies.”
Other examples of tools Sixpoint has created for data consumption include a hop futures modeling tool and a recipe formulation tool; the brewery utilizes these regularly and they’re continuously changing and updating to best suit the brewery’s needs.
“We rarely purchase software,” Gordon said. “We try to build our tools ourselves as much as possible.
“Doing so provides us with total control and allows us to customize what we’re building and manipulate the data in any way we want.”
And, he added, it saves a buck or two on the bottom line.
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