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I am trying to narrow down the type of manufacturing a brewery represents. Browsing wikipedia lists a number of styles and a few fit. I think it falls somewhere on the lean / agile / JIT spectrum but would like to narrow that down. Some salient points:

  • Production is batched, we can not continuously produce beer
  • It takes 3-4 weeks to make a batch
  • Product shelf life is 3-6 months
  • We are in the early stages of rapid growth
  • We have production/sales targets to meet

Right now letting demand pull production along, but I'd like to improve the process.

Thanks.

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what level of production are you at now? Do you have experience with any larger levels – TimJ♦ Feb 4 at 22:02
We are at 100 bbl annually shooting for 1000 this year. No experience. – Dean Brundage Feb 4 at 22:44
Holy crap, MIT's Sloan School of Business invented the Beer Distribution Game 50 years ago. Gonna play this with my partner & our interns. – Dean Brundage Feb 5 at 2:36
If it was me I would start networking with other brewers if you have not already and talk to them. I think Sam Adams has some kind of support network for small brewers. – TimJ♦ Feb 5 at 15:04
Done that @TimJ. Joined two professional brewing organizations and attend their monthly meetings. Most of the discussions are about brewing process not about business. We try not to do anything that looks like collusion. – Dean Brundage Feb 5 at 18:43

2 Answers

up vote 3 down vote

Assuming you are in the US, the second part of your question is easy to answer. Just take a look at any of the successful microbreweries in your area and copy their methods!

There is a very successful microbrewery a few blocks from my home. Their methods are easy to copy.

  1. Start with single batches- appeal to the very local market within a mile of the shop.
  2. Use profits from first batches to buy more brewing equipment. Now brew overlapping batches.
  3. Introduce merchandise lines- t-shirts, glasses, etc so your customers pay to advertise for you.
  4. Identify top selling brew and ensure that is always available
  5. Target a few local bars and get your beer sold there
  6. Expand the number of available brews and open a tasting room.
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+1 Better practical advice vs. my reading materials :) . – jimg Feb 4 at 21:41
We are at step 6 right now. As we transition to larger scale I want processes in place to help prevent over or under supply. – Dean Brundage Feb 4 at 22:46
up vote 1 down vote

There are two questions here - definition of manufacturing type and improving process.

Can't really answer the first - perishable goods is a production category and likely comes with its own subcategories.

As for process optimization, it would seem to me that Kanban would be well suited for mapping improvements with perishable goods. Perhaps the PM stackexchange group would be of more assistance to you.

I agree with their assessment of David Anderson's book - Kanban, Successful Evolutionary Change for Your Technology Business - it is a good read (not entirely sure that it would be applicable to your use case)

There is a linkedin post from a person thinking of Kanban production methods in breweries - perhaps reaching out to him would be helpful

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Thanks. I'll look at these. – Dean Brundage Feb 4 at 22:46

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