Modern technology for the brewing process
Not having pure water is a disaster if you want tasty beer. So Welde sources water from its own wells. The traditional brewery uses chlorine dioxide to disinfect the brewing and process water.
Clean brewing water, germ-free bottles, reliable cooling
Clean brewing water, germ-free bottles, reliable cooling: all three elements are key to breweries, including Weldebräu in Plankstadt, Germany. These days the family-run business, which was founded in the 18th century under the name “Zum grünen Laub”, produces numerous beers and beer mixes. Water parameters have to be continually monitored and regulated throughout the brewing process, making intelligent measuring and control technology essential.
Welde uses the water from its own wells to produce its beverages. The brewery has to maintain and document the perfect quality of its well water. Alongside pure well water, reliable cooling is also indispensable to Weldebräu, to cool the wort, for example. The company has to ensure this cooling process and protect the cooling tower from contamination. Protection from contamination is important in the bottling process too: the bottles need to be free of germs.
At the well site, there is a chlorine dioxide system installed between the pipework and tank. This uses chlorine dioxide for volume-proportional disinfection of the well water and is designed to treat between 50 and 10,000 m3 of water. Sensors monitor the correct concentrations of up to 0.4 ppm (parts per million) of chlorine dioxide.
Key data
- Company: Weldebräu GmbH & Co. KG in Plankstadt, Germany
- Industry: regional brewery
- Founded in 1752: brewery currently being run by the 9th generation of the founding family
- Turnover: ten million euro (which is the equivalent of around one million litres of beer or three million 0.33 l bottles)
- 17 types of beer: Welde No.1, Naturradler (natural lager and lemonade mix), Weizen (wheat beer), alcohol-free Weizen, various craft beers etc.
- Distance from ProMinent: 7.4 kilometres
- ProMinent products used: chlorine dioxide systems, measuring and control technology, metering technology for belt lubrication
Clean well water
Weldebräu is able to easily treat its well water using ProMinent technology. At the well site, there is a chlorine dioxide system installed between the pipework and tank. This uses chlorine dioxide for volume-proportional disinfection of the well water and is designed to treat between 50 and 10,000 m3 of water. Sensors monitor the correct concentrations of up to 0.4 ppm (parts per million) of chlorine dioxide.
Reliable cooling
By metering inhibitors and biocides into the cooling water and using filters, the Plankstadt-based brewery protects its cooling tower from corrosion, deposits and biological growth. A controller continuously monitors conductivity and controls biocide metering for this purpose. Solenoid metering pumps ensure constant and precise metering here too.
Germ-free bottles
Weldebräu uses chlorine dioxide in its bottle washing machine too. Measured value-dependent metering of up to 2 ppm of chlorine dioxide ensures germ-free beer bottles. Sensors continuously monitor the precise chlorine dioxide content in the bottle washing machine’s water bath. A controller ensures that the measured values are processed and that the pumps are controlled. The waste water produced by cleaning the bottles is treated and reused as washing water.