Bass Electrical helps Tooheys automate beer-brewing process

When Tooheys decided to upgrade its brewery in Lidcombe, NSW, it turned to Bass Electrical Engineering for assistance. The ARA Group-owned Bass has been carrying out electrical work at the Tooheys Lidcombe site for several years. There was a tendering process for the installation and part of the reason Bass was successful was due to the company’s quality work and high safety standards.

The production capacity of Tooheys Lidcombe brewery (in operation since 1978) is around 3.3 million hectolitres a year. The brewery is the group’s primary facility in NSW and delivers around 43% share of the NSW beer market. As a part of the upgrade, a new Bright Beer Tank (BBT) cellar was installed to replace three BBT cellars. The old cellars had a manual process and were replaced to eliminate the manual handling component and to improve product quality. With the help of Bass’s electrical engineers and technicians, the cellar now has an automated beer-brewing process. Bass designed and built the stainless steel local control panels and provided power, automation and control communications to the cellar.

Bright Beer storage tanks

“The tank-top lighting posed a challenge. Due to the height of the top of the tanks, there was a risk of tools and equipment falling when installing lights on traditional light poles. This was solved by the use of the Swivelpoles,” said Bass Electrical General Manager David Le Beau.

The Swivelpole light-mounting system allows for safe and easy access to lights for installation, inspection and maintenance. The poles have a bracketing arrangement for affixing the lights, eliminating the need to drill holes. Swivelpole’s innovative design eliminates the risk of working at heights through the controlled lowering of the pole top to a safe working position. The system solved access issues, raised safety standards and lowered maintenance costs.

“Another challenge was a very short time frame to complete the project. Bass Electrical was required to use services of the on-site mechanical contractor for manufacture of all stainless steel cable supports for the entire project. The mechanical contractor also had to complete other contract work for the same project within the same time frame. This was addressed by planning, prioritising and holding regular meetings with the mechanical contractor to keep communication lines open and to ensure both trades met their respective timelines,” said Le Beau.
“Tooheys’ projects are always interesting because Tooheys uses innovative systems. The work is of a niche nature and fits well with Bass’s experience and capability,” said Le Beau. Bass Electrical was also named a finalist in the National Electrical and Communications Association (NECA) NSW Excellence Awards in the Industrial Project Category for the company’s work on the project.

Bass delivers services across a wide range of markets including the mining and resources, steel, oil, gas, water, energy generation, manufacturing, food and beverage, process, and petrochemical industry sectors.