Technical achievements in energy conservation by beverage-related processing industries: Breweries, dairies, distilleries and maltings

Patterns of adoption and adaptation of a wide range of energy-conserving technologies were observed in 1983-1984. Wide differences occurred in the various subsectors with regard to their willingness to test and invest in relatively new technologies (e.g. heat-pump applications in the malting industry) and their limited adaptation of better established technologies (e.g. minimal use of heat-recovery plant in the dairy industry). The most widely employed techniques were low-energy lighting and power-factor correction, both of which generate significant savings with minimal alteration to process plant and working methods, are capable of great flexibility in their mode of application, and can be installed independently for small parts of the total plant, in a step-by-step manner. The generally disappointing findings are associated with internal management attitudes to full systematic treatments of energy-cost problems (e.g. lack of application of usable accounting and monitoring systems), artificially high barriers to investment, especially in smaller organisations, and widespread lack of commitment to, and understanding of, relevant innovation procedures. Site-specific constraints are also important in some older production facilities.