Omer Vander Ghinste is an established name in the beer world. The beer of the family brewery located near Kortrijk is very popular. Therefore, an expansion of the production was necessary. In a new building there was room for nine CCT tanks, with the possibility of expanding to twelve tanks. Lybover won the contract to provide the first nine tanks with hygienic piping.
In one of the largest brewery projects to date for Lybover METAL, it all came down to precision and a high standard of finishing. Thanks to precise preparation and a well-matched team, Omer Vander Ghinste was able to increase its capacity without a hitch.
Everything in-house: from 3D scan to assembly
For the brand new CCTs (Cylindrical Conical Tanks), Lybover installed all piping, support of those piping with piperacks, instrumentation and pumps. “The CCTs are very important, because that’s where the fermentation of the beer takes place,” says Bram Gevaert, Project Engineer at Lybover METAL. “In a first phase, we ran pipes from the existing building to the new one. Once a specialised firm had installed the tanks, we could start on the second phase: the piping. “
Omer Vander Ghinste preferred fixed piping at height. “That was definitely a challenge,” continues Bram. “The pipes are very long and, moreover, they are often CIP cleaned (Clean In Place). Therefore, the stainless steel pipes had to be placed on sliding brackets. Because the heat causes a temperature difference which causes the tubes to expand slightly. The brackets allow this without putting any stress on the pipes. To design the piperack efficiently, a 3D scan of the building was made. After the design, the piperacks were produced in-house and assembled on site by our own assembly team. Due to the preparatory work, everything could be assembled on site in a minimum lead time. “
Great attention to cleanability
The entire installation had to meet the highest finishing standards. Although the pipes are CIP cleaned, it is also very important that the inside of the pipes are finished as smoothly as possible. After all, water, wort or beer passes through the pipes. In an uneven or dead space, organic material can accumulate and contaminate the brewing process.
“So you can’t just use any kind of joint,” Bram explains. “All the pipes must be ground, and the welding must be done very neatly. In order to check the quality of the finish of the welds, we carried out endoscopic examinations together with the customer at regular intervals. This high standard of finishing was nothing new for Lybover. The exceptional thing was that it had to be done on a larger scale in this project. “
Secure preparation and follow-up
In order to win this contract, the project team had prepared an extensive file: technically in-depth with a precise calculation and a strength calculation for the piperacks. The customer could immediately see who would be doing what, so we could count on their trust.
“The contact person with the customer was also someone with a great eye for detail,” says Bram. “That’s why our approach caught on and the cooperation went very smoothly. We worked with about 15 people on this project: mechanics from Lybover INSTALLATION, planners, the project manager and the technical designers. Overview and good communication are very important. On site there was also a smooth contact with our chief mechanic. The result was positive feedback and a satisfied customer. “
