SAFETY
The right brew for beverage and distillery flooring With a plethora of micro-breweries making inroads into the beverage market, it pays to make sure the flooring surface is hygienic and safe. Food & Beverage Industry News finds out more from Roxset.
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he craft beer and distillery market in Australia is worth in excess of $4 billion and growing. Although currently dominated by North American brands, more exciting new craft brewers and distilleries are setting up rapidly throughout the country, with up to 600 brands now being available. The Independent Brewers Association (IBA) estimates that there will be double-digit growth of 24.2 per cent for local craft beer through the liquor stores over the next 12 months, proving Australia has a growing appetite for quality beer and spirits. Wealthy investors and bankers also view the market as a key opportunity with the likes of Gerry Harvey recently investing $20 million to build Australia’s largest whisky company. Similar to the building and construction of a winery, breweries and distilleries have parallel challenges in getting the floor coating just right. The brewing process is subject to constant wear and tear and spills. This is driven by steam and boiling water creating a large swing in temperatures that the flooring needs to withstand. Following on from the production process, forklifts and pallet jacks are used to transport ingredients and finished brews to delivery trucks. This constant traffic movement can cause the floor to crack and peel and result in dangerous trip hazards, as well as a build-up in bacteria. A seamless heavy-duty, non-slip epoxy floor from a company like Roxset Health and Safety Flooring will protect from accidents and inhibit growth of bacteria and provide ease of cleaning. Another key consideration with the final coating is erosion. Sugar solutions used in wine making and brewing rapidly erode concrete, which can leave the surface pitted and damaged resulting in expensive downtime and repairs. It
also creates a hazardous working environment for workers. Breweries, distilleries and wineries have a lot of rules and regulations they are required to follow, not just in terms of how they run overall, but their set-up, too. Important requirements they must meet include: • A brewery floor needs to be made of non-porous material, with no cracks and gaps. • F looring must have antimicrobial properties to prevent collection of bacteria and other harmful organisms and meet HACCP Compliance. Flooring in breweries should be made of non-porous material.
38 Food&Beverage Industry News | September 2019 | www.foodmag.com.au
• F loor coating must be moisture and chemical resistant and not degrade quickly due to repeated exposure. • Floor coating must work well in both wet and dry conditions. • Floor coating should be non-slip and have low environmental impact. The SE Floor Coating Solution from Roxset is a specialised tailored system to suit high impact wet areas for the food and beverage industry. Key clients over the past 30 years include, Ned’s Whisky, Capital Brewing, Vasse Felix Winery and Voyager Estate. For consumers, breweries and
distilleries are a cool place to hang out and see how the beverage is made and to sample offerings. But what they do not realise is the level of detail, which goes into every choice made. From the brewing of equipment to the flooring, everything needs careful consideration. Roxset has the expertise and history to make sure all hygienic and safety concerns are met in distilleries, wineries and breweries. It works with clients so it can find a solution that will mean the floor surface meets strict Australian standards and makes for a safe and healthy workplace for employees. F
