Dousers Brewery Operation Processes - Assignment Example

 Summary Operation processes require a systematic plan in order for the management team to carry out its roles effectively. It is therefore a practical approach to breakdown the entire operation process into distinct stages. In this report, the organization’s process is outlined, effectiveness of the stages evaluated and finally compared with a theoretical model. A conclusion is drawn from the operation outlined in line with the comparison made and recommendations duly given. The process chosen is that of a small scale brewery plant with a huge growth potential but limited by the process operations adopted. Table of Contents Item Page Number Introduction 3 1. Dousers’ Brewery Operation Processes 4 1.1 Raw Material Reception 4 1.2 Germination 5 1.3 Drying, Roasting and Milling 5 1.4 Boiling and Hopping 6 1.5 Fermenting 7 1.6 Separation, Maturation, Packaging and Marketing 7 2. Dousers’ Organizational Processes 8 3. Process Evaluation 11 4. Comparison with a Relevant Operational Model 12 Conclusion 12 Recommendations 13 Internal Operational Processes in Dousers Limited 1.0 Introduction Dousers Limited is a private company that deals in the manufacture of alcoholic beverages at a relatively small scale. Since its establishment in the year 2006, the organization has endeavoured to stick to the conservative traditional brewing process with an aim of retaining a natural touch to its products. Through this objective, the company has been able to create a huge following from conservative beer customers who prefer as simply prepared product as the traditional technique is. An organic product mix has been the objective of Dousers Due to the complex brewing requirements that health standards in the modern society demands, Dousers has always been unable to meet its ever growing demand. One of the reasons why Dousers has been compelled to stick to the traditional processing line is partly due to the organic policy enshrined in its objectives as well as a marketing strategy. On the organic policy, concerns of human health amid the infiltration of numerous synthetic products in the market led to the idea of producing alcoholic beverages that promote health conscious products. Debate is rife on the adverse impact of modern technology on human health as posed by direct consumer products posing serious threats to the sustainability of chemical technologies as well as other health related products. Alternatively, the traditional line of operation and production presents a unique market to the brewery industry to such an extent that the demand cannot be fully satisfied. Commercialization of the traditional production is usually difficult due to the labour intensive operation required. Incorporation of the human touch in any product has a huge following, many of whom describe it as artistic or natural touch. To tap this unique market presented by the underlying facts, Dousers has been able to establish its market positioning as a purely organic producer. On the other hand the balancing of the labour requirements that a labour intensive industry dictates augers well with the local market which forms the bulk of the clientele. 1.1 Dousers’ Brewery Operation Processes Generally, brewery processes are determined by two factors namely; end product and raw materials. At Dousers’ the largest proportion of the product mix is composed of bottled and kegged beer mainly made from barley. Wines and spirits are also produced at Dousers but at a smaller proportion. Other raw materials that Dousers use for the other products include potatoes, maize, sugar cane, grapes and some juicy fruits. The difference between wines and beers is the raw material used where wines are largely produced by grapes and fruits. Different beers exist depending on the preparation as wines do. However, beers have an almost similar preparatory procedure, which is discussed below in an outline of the main stages. Until the fermentation stage, the rest are preparatory stages; alternatively, beer cannot be formed without fermentation. Despite the fact that high hygienic standards should be maintained in the production of every human consumption commodities, fermentation requires extremely stringent hygiene practices due to microbial contamination risks. The employees in this plant must be vigilant to ensure good end product as desired (Hill, 133). Methanol, which is a toxic fermentation product, should be avoided as much as possible to avoid contamination of the final product by strictly controlling the procedure as outlined. 1.2 Raw Material Reception Barley is procured from farmers in a dried condition; dried to a specific moisture content which is recommended by human health regulatory authorities. It is then delivered to the company’s production plant where it is unloaded for brewing process to commence. Our plant operation staff members ensure that the consignment is in a high quality condition and moisture checked. Quality checks department ensures that every consignment channelled into the production line is of the highest possible quality status. Drying might be recommended on a consignment upon receipt, which can be done in the plant instead of dispatching to the farmer for the same. Consignments are usually delivered well in advance to avoid shortage of raw materials required by our production capacity. 1.3 Germination Successful consignments enter into the next stage in manageable quantities. In this stage, the barley is thoroughly cleaned any foreign matter removed. A room with huge sinks is used at Dousers to clean and sort out the grains using the human hand. After the cleaning and sorting, the barley is taken to another room with an airy-warm and moist environment out of contamination by air or water. This incubation allows germination of the seeds in five to eight days. After germination, the seeds are sorted out, separating the rootless grain which is usually not desired in the brewery process. The impact of germinating the seeds is to produce malt, a carbohydrate rich solution. Scientifically, germination breaks down starch reserves in the grain into simple sugars such as dextrin and maltose. Generally, sugar is not added in the brewed solution since it is naturally extracted from the grain by germination. The sopping done during germinated of the grain, in clean water, enables the mobilization of the sugars to be available for the brewing process (Eßlinger, 152). Another reason for germinating the seeds is to obtain the malted solution which adds flavour to beer; sugar content however has to be enhanced otherwise. 1.4 Drying, Roasting and Milling Immediately after the germinated seed is obtained, it is dried to ensure that the grain loses the moisture it needed for germination. Germinated seed is then roasted for dark realts or varieties of beer up to the extent that the desired beer colour is achieved. Where light coloured beers are needed, the roasting done is minimised accordingly. Alternatively, when dark beers are not needed, no roasting is done; drying alone is done to pave way for milling. Giant ovens are used to roast the germinated seed. Heat regulation is used to control the roasting process and ensure that the grain does not over-roast or even burn. After roasting, an even coloured mass is obtained and collected for the next stage which involves milling. Operation provisions outlined ensure that the grain moving from germination to roasting is not wasted in the movement, to increase the flour quantity and quality. Dark flour is obtained after the introduction of the roasted grain in a milling machine that grinds it finely (Eßlinger, 168). The importance of this stage is to increase the surface area of the grain product needed in the most important stage; fermentation. Fermentation is a biological procedure that involves microorganisms and to increase their efficiency, the substrate surface area is increased by reducing its size as much as possible. At this stage, the sugar content needs to be enhanced using a natural means, which is achieved in the next stage. 1.5 Boiling and Hopping Brewing process is now near the final and defining stages of beer production. After milling, the flour is put in clean boiling pots filled with clean water. Characteristically, the resulting solution after mixing the meal with water is a sweet smooth product usually dark in colour depending on the amount of roasting done to the grain. The huge metal pots have a good supply of heating energy to ensure that boiling is efficiently done. Coal is the most commonly used fuel at Dousers. This sweet tasting product that enters into the boiling is known as wort. Hygiene is of essence since this product must be very clean for human consumption purposes. Besides the grain product, something is also added in the giant boiling pot; a plant product called hops. Hops are a climbing plant obtained from South America that is added to beer to add to it a bitter characteristic taste. Hops flowers are the useful plant parts for this process, but only the female flower is suitable for this characteristic bitter taste. Alternatively, it is used to add preservative effects to the main product. Scientific information available about hops illustrates that it has antimicrobial effects, especially to bacterial strains that destroy beer, consequently reducing its shelf life. At Dousers, we do not add any more preservative, even if this makes our beer have a shorter shelf life. This is one of the reasons why our supply must not exceed the current demand since our beer products can not be stored like the others using chemical means do. Before transferring to the next container for fermenting, the hops are removed from the sweet-bitter solution. The hopless solution is first cooled before draining it to the fermenting chamber (Ranjan, sinobrew.com). 1.6 Fermenting The cooled solution is introduced into the huge fermenting chamber where alcohol is generated. Aseptic techniques that ensure that the fermentation room is very clean and free of microorganisms are maintained. Antimicrobial sprays are used in the room and air flow controlled to avoid influx of microorganisms from the environment. This is ensured because the yeast introduced in the chamber must be very pure to prevent other forms of fermentation that give rise to methanol, an alcoholic poison (Eßlinger, 207). Yeast is introduced in vials from the top of the chamber and temperatures maintained at 10 °C. 1.7 Separation, Maturation, Packaging and Marketing Beer has been produced by the last stage of fermentation, but it requires a few preparatory stages before it is ready for drinking. Yeast is first separated from the beer solution by filtration that uses a series of fine sieves that have been pressurised to enhance performance. This is done by first draining the beer into another smaller air free chamber that contains the sieve series. Pressure is applied to the airtight chamber for separation to be enhanced. Yeast so obtained is usually recycled since it is only a catalyst. After clarifying the beer by fine pressurised filtration, the beer is harvested for maturation. A huge chamber similar to the fermentation chamber is used for maturation, only that it does not contain yeast. All these containers and the rooms they are housed must be aseptically cleaned and dried before introduction of the product. The matured beer is finally ready for packaging into our custom designed bottles, cans and kegs (Eßlinger, 215). Before packaging, a professional beer taster employed by the company to verify the quality of the beer stamps his authority for distribution to kick off. The bottle-tops and cans designs are as natural as a package can be with simple natural features such as cork for the bottle and straw designed from hollow plants going with the cans. Keg containers have wood lining to give the natural look. The marketing stage is usually done in the local town and the neighbouring suburbs in a considerably effortless manner due to the readily available market and brand name established over time. It is a unique product with a unique market since the demand surpasses the supply by a huge margin. 2. Dousers’ Organizational Processes Dousers’ organizational processes are headed by different departmental directors, coincidentally organized as outlined above. Above them are human resource manager and the plant manager, who in turn are answerable to the Chief Executive Officer. The management team has a well outlined operational organization structure with an appropriate number of assistants dictated by the tasks involved in each department. Some departments are deliberately narrowed down in terms of tasks and increased staffing due to the sensitivity of the department. For instance, the Fermentation Department is only headed by the Fermentation Director who only monitors the fermentation process. Under him are for Assistant Directors who are highly qualified for the fermentation process. They also assist the other directors in ensuring that hygiene compliance is maintained from the onset. These tasks are exclusively related to the brewing process, since there are other operational processes that the company deals in that are not directly relevant to the beer making process, such as financial and audit processes. Quality intensive policies are under implementation in the organization, than quality intensive policy implementation mainly due to the sensitivity that the food industry is faced with. The management of the company is well aware of the implication that a single quality hitch could bring to the image of the company, and also aware that the market coverage needs to be streamlined to maintain a healthy market position. To make up for the missing link and high cost involved in the labor intensive production, the company has pricing strategy that enables it to sustain its operations. To ensure that the company does not loose sight of its quality and brand niche established in the market, an organizational structure and operation has been developed as outlined above and described below. Firstly, the reception department is directly under the raw materials department. Order placement, procurement and reception are operational processes that directly affect brewery process. Just as outlined in above, quantity and quality are facilitated in the department. Operation reserves must be created and sustained in the department. Record keeping following each consignment and stored balances must be carried out to monitor reserve volumes. Quality checks records are also done and monitored by the department to ensure that the brewing process flows smoothly. Secondly, pre-fermentation must be done jointly by the involved departments namely; Germination, Drying, Roasting and Milling, Boiling and Hopping Directors in accordance with the quality needed in the wort. The three officials are closely involved in operations of handling of the wort before the fermentation. In case the fermentation process fails due to poor quality of the wort, these directors will be answerable. Fermentation Assistant Directors are always on the lookout to avoid hitches in the pre-fermentation processes, checking the quality of the wort before entering the fermentation phase. Thirdly, fermentation process continues with the brew processing taking over the wort and ensures that the microbial phase is carried out as accurately and efficiently as possible. Microbiology is involved where laboratory technicians isolate and multiply the correct yeast strains needed for fermentation without contamination by foreign microbes. Toxic products can are obtained by the failure of surveillance stringency and accuracy of this department. Finally, Separation, Maturation sections of the last departments continue with the process from the fermentation stage. One Assistant Director helps the Director in running the operations of the department. The other section incorporates the packaging process which is closely linked to the marketing process. Two Assistant Directors head this segment with delivery logistics. As mentioned earlier the company’s marketing strategy is straightforward and hustle-free due to the good niche developed so far. The Director in this last department is also variously referred to as the Marketing Director. The company intends to expand its operations and promote this director into a Marketing Manager. 3.0 Process Evaluation An analysis of effectiveness of the processes at Dousers that has recently been conducted gave useful insights on the changes that are needed and the practices to be retained. Raw materials acquisition and reception was one of the best performing departments since the production line has never been seriously compromised, despite natural and artificial shortages experienced in the past. The pre-fermentation stages have not been perfect due to certain hitches in the quality of the wort in a few instances which resulted in disqualification. The resulting delays and wastage occasioned serious financial losses. As it was established, the germination stages were not perfectly done mainly due to imbalance of the parameters for the germinating seeds. The Assistant Director has since been demoted for inaccuracies for more than once. With the fermentation department team’s strict and swift surveillance, the quality of beer has never been compromised. Very qualified staff members that man this department have been accorded several employee awards. Separation and maturation stage has had a few issues, mainly related to delay which was caused by the quality of filtering material, necessitating several filtering rounds. The marketing department has no serious issues, other than those of the entire company’s capacity inability to meet the demand (Chambers, Johnston and Slack, 326). However, the pricing strategy has been reviewed to several times to ensure that productivity is ensured within the limited capacity. To achieve the process analysis, the company has used its evaluation plan which depends on the expected results against the actual results. This result oriented evaluation tool has been applied for quite some time because it has been giving reliable results to the management team. A manual tool has been formulated by the CEO and the execution of the program is done on a full time basis. The reports given by the Assistant directors heading every department are used in checking the outcome of the operation process (Bal, 342). Rating this operations assessment, the company can be said to be operating favourably. However, better operation results can be obtained by constant reviews of the operation systems. 4.0 Comparison with a Relevant Operational Model According to the operational model in use at Dousers Limited, the basic operational units are linked and related since the process is a continuous cascade. The adopted model leans on the expected results which must meet the most important objective of the company at the moment; brand name and customer loyalty. A well coordinated procedure flow is a necessity at Dousers and the relatively limited capacity, with the coverage of a small market seems to limit the company. This can be described as an imperfect case of a Just In Time (JIT) model. This is because it concentrates in the current capacity and is tied down by the need to maintain a high quality product and deliver it at the right time despite the challenge of meeting the demand. In a perfect scenario of a Just In Time model, the three parameters match; quality, time and quantity (Porter, 67). According to the author, continuity in quality and waste elimination are the key features of this model, which the company does well. However, meeting the demand is a key area that the company has been failing in. perhaps the management should prioritise marketing strategies as soon as possible. 5.0 Conclusion Despite a perfect quality control in the operations of Dousers Limited, it is apparent that the trend will hurt possible expansions in future. If the operation foundation is not going to change to accommodate larger capacity, then the excessive demand is going to attract many players to cater for the inadequate supply. Competition will threaten the company’s existence and strategic positioning. Strategic operations management should highlight the minimal capacity to handle the demand. 6.0 Recommendations Top on the policy agenda that the company has for the future must be consideration of an operation expansion plan. Demand must be met while maintaining quality; there are technological solutions in the modern brewery practices that can be optimised to retain the natural touch while still operating on a large scale. Efficiency can be handled by streamlining the departmental organization, probably creating more departments which will be more vigilant. However, mechanization of the plant reduces human error while reducing costs of time, wastage, labour and surveillance. Operational model does not change like business strategies do, making it easier for the company to adopt new practices that can continue for a long time. A winning model should be based on the capacity map against the market performance of the organization (Morris, 2010). Marketing should aim at creating new markets and increase the customer base to larger figures. The local market appears inadequate for future expansion plans. References Bal, J., 1998, “Process Analysis Tools for Process Improvement.” The TQM Journal,” 10.5: 342-354. Chambers, S. Johnston, R. & Slack, N., 2009, Operations and process management: principles and practice for strategic impact. Harlow, England: Financial Times. Eßlinger, H. M., 2009, Handbook of Brewing: Processes, Technology, Markets. Weinhein, Germany: Wiley-VCH. Hill, K. T., 2010, Career Opportunities in the Food and Beverage Industry.” New York, NY: Infobase Publishing. Morris, L., 2010, How to Create a Winning Business Model. Retrieved 22nd January 2011 http://www.innovationlabs.com/2010/02/how-to-create-a-winning-business-model/ Porter, A., 2009, Operations management. Frederiksberg, Denmark: Ventus Publishing ApS. Ranjan, A., 2009, Beer Manufacturing Process. Noida: Jaypee Institute of Information Technology. Retrieved 22nd January 2011 http://www.sinobrew.com/images/beer-production.pdf Read More