Pilsen brewery new packaging hall: construction is underway

With the concreting of the last supporting structure the construction of the new Pilsen brewery packaging hall today entered its next phase. After receiving the necessary permits at the beginning of March, Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. began the construction phase of the largest investment project ever witnessed at the Pilsen brewery. The construction work forms part of the comprehensive Pilsner Urquell Flavour Stability project, which falls under the framework of SABMiller activities to develop Pilsner Urquell, the flagship of its international portfolio, into a truly international brand.

The entire project is divided into 3 phases, of which only phase one, costing approx. CZK 1 billion, has been outlined in detail. The first phase is due to be completed at the end of 2006, while pilot operations for the packaging hall and related technological operations are scheduled for October 2006. Other phases will be drawn up in the future according to the growth in demand for Pilsner Urquell beer.

This schedule is behind the extraordinarily rapid pace of construction. Over the last five weeks, the supplier, Metrostav, has carried out all preparatory and ground works on the site. All 244 bored piles and bases required for the building’s foundations have already been set in concrete and the supporting steel constructions for the hall are currently being assembled. At the same time, Metrostav is also laying engineering networks (water piping, sewerage, cables) and is also putting the finishing touches to the monolithic collector construction, which is going on at a depth of 1 to 1.8 metres below the packaging hall.

Mike Short, Managing Director of Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. says „We remain absolutely committed to the original brewing receipe for Pilsner Urquell, which has existed for more than 160 years. We continue to use the traditional raw materials of the highest quality. However, state-of-the-art technology has a very important role in helping us to maintain absolute consistency in each step of production. We must, therefore, continue to invest into advanced processes and increased capacity related to the production, packaging and distribution of our beer. This current investment in new technology, universal packaging hall and distribution storehouses plays a key role in our plans to increase significantly the export of Pilsner Urquell from the Pilsen brewery, as well as to maintain its original flavour and profile when the beer travels on its long journeys to distant market all over the world.“

Rene Hermann, director of Metrostav Division 6, which is responsible for the Plzensky Prazdroj project, is convinced that in spite of the short deadline the company will finish the job in time and to a quality that meets the most demanding EU technical and hygiene standards. „Metrostav has proven its quality and merit for the 35 years of its existence. Domestic and international investors are persuaded of our ability to come up with the right technical solutions for the most demanding projects, requiring precision and consistencz in every detail. This project also represents a great challenge for us, and I think that the first days have shown that we will do everything in our capacity to ensure that the outcome is successful.“
 
The new packaging hall building, which will also contain the distribution warehouse, will hold two packaging lines: for bottles (returnable and non-returnable), and for cans. The building will also contain offices, stores of labels, empty cans and new bottles, a maintenance workshop and a laboratory. The new premises will form part of the tour route for visitors to the brewery. The investment project also includes the construction of a beer filtration building – two new filtration lines and bright beer tanks. The state-of-the-art filtration and pasteurisation technology, packaging lines and immediately accessible distribution areas are all designed to reduce the effect of oxygen on the beer, preserve its positive characteristics for as long as possible and keep the time it takes to reach the customer to a minimum so that it tastes the same in the Na Spilce brewery as it does in Times Square in New York.

FACTS ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGING HALL AND FILTRATION IN THE PILSEN BREWERY:

• The building, including storehouses, will have a total area of 20 000 m²
  
• Bottling line rating – 60 000 bottles per hour
  
• Can line rating – 26 000 0.5 litre cans per hour (or 38 000 0.33 litre cans)
  
• Filtration capacity – 1 200 hl per hour on two filtration lines
  
• Total capacity for the bright beer tanks – 14 000 hl (8 tanks, 2x 1 000 hl, 2x 2 000 hl, 4x 2 000 hl) + 2 000 hl tank for deareated water (D-Water Tank).

FACTS ABOUT THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE NEW PACKAGING HALL AND FILTRATION BLOCK:

• The surface area of the packaging hall building including storehouses – 120 x 162 m, bright beer tanks and filtration building – 77 x 51 m
  
• Height of the packaging hall 9.8 m (headroom below roof girders 7 m)
  
• Height of the filtration hall 8 m, bright beer tank hall18 m
  
• 997.5 tons of steel will be used for the hall’s supporting structure
  
• Beer from the existing brew house will be transported to both new operations through approx. 440 metres of piping.

For more information please contact:

Alexej Bechtin, Spokesman, Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s., +420 724 617 219
Ing. Frantisek Polak, Spokesman, Metrostav a.s., +420 602 612 793

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• Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. is the Czech market leader and with exports to 50 countries world-wide is also the largest exporter of Czech beer. The major Plzensky Prazdroj brands in the Czech Republic are Pilsner Urquell, Gambrinus, Radegast and Velkopopovicky Kozel.
  
• Plzensky Prazdroj, a. s. currently employs 2 522 people in its breweries in Pilsen, Nosovice, Velke Popovice and 13 business distribution centres throughout the Czech Republic.
  
• Plzensky Prazdroj is part of the international brewing company SABMiller plc, the second largest in the world. The SABMiller flagship brand is Pilsner Urquell.

Prague