PNEUMATICS 24 HYDRAULICS & PNEUMATICS February 2026 www.hpmag.co.uk As breweries respond to rising costs, labour pressures and the need for greater consistency, attention is turning to the reliability of valves, actuators and pneumatic control systems. Yet in many operations, these components are still selected individually rather than specified as a wider fluid power system. With an engineering background in industrial process applications, we work with breweries to design and supply smart actuated valve and pneumatic solutions that improve control, reduce downtime and support scalable production. The aim is not automation for its own sake, but to build confidence in the whole fluid handling process. We complete several site visits a year, and one issue repeatedly arises across breweries of all sizes: valves rarely fail because they are inherently unsuitable products. They fail because they were never specified correctly for an application. Too often, valves are selected based on cost, availability or legacy preference, without adequate consideration of duty cycle, actuation method, cleaning regime, operating pressure, temperature or media. Pneumatic and solenoid values may be underspecified or mismatched to the wider system, leading to inconsistent flow, premature wear and unplanned downtime. From a fluid power perspective, the problem is not the component but the lack of system-level thinking. A systems-led approach Effective valve selection in brewing starts with understanding the process, rather than the product in isolation. Our structured engineering approach considers the process function (transfer, isolation, mixing, cleaning or filling), media characteristics (wort, beer, CO2 or cleaning chemicals), operating conditions (pressure, temperature and cycle frequency), the environment (washdown, safe or hazardous area requirements), and control philosophy (manual, semi or fully automated). When valves, actuators and solenoid valves are specified within this context, performance and reliability improve significantly. We find this approach particularly effective when refitting older brewhouses, where targeted upgrades to control components can modernise systems without the cost of a complete replacement. Pneumatics remain well-suited to brewery environments due to their robustness, simplicity and tolerance of washdown conditions. Combined with hygienic. ATEX-certified stainless steel actuated valves, provide reliable control across key applications, including brewhouses, fermentation vessels, CIP skids, and keg washing or filling machines. Solenoid valves play a critical role in Rethinking fluid control in brewery operations Brewing may be rooted in tradition yet driven by creativity, but at its core, it is a fluid handling process. Liquids are transferred, heated, cooled, cleaned and packaged through systems that rely on controlled, hygienic and repeatable flow. For independent, craft and multi-site breweries, the performance of these systems directly affects efficiency, beer quality and long-term resilience. Barry Williams, the director of SAV reports.
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