Heineken Marrying Digital Twins With Operational Data to Reduce Energy
Heineken is taking learnings from its work in digital twins and further investing in its energy-reduction efforts across production sites around the world.
The No. 13 publicly owned consumer goods company will leverage Siemens technology and consulting services to reduce energy usage at more than 15 beer and malt production sites in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe as part of its bid to reach net zero in Scopes 1 and 2 across all production sites by 2030.
The two companies initially collaborated on for consulting, auditing, and advisory services, using an energy digital twin to simulate and analyze a virtual replica of a typical Heineken brewery to identify potential significant energy savings. The simulation showed approximately 70% of energy use was linked to the generation of heating and cooling necessary for the brewing process, according to a statement from Heineken.
Combining the digital twin with operational data at each site, Siemens will develop and implement a system that electrifies heat and cooling production using heat pumps powered by renewable energy. The system will in turn leverage built-in analytics to reduce energy costs and maintain operational efficiency, all intended to decrease reliance on steam generated by fossil fuels, said Heineken.
More sites beyond the initial 15 are planned as part of a second phase, and Heineken will also connect its breweries to the solution provider’s systems for remote monitoring of its production sites. The companies expect energy savings of 15-20% at each site, and an average CO2 reduction of 50% at each site.
Manufacturing Digitization
These most recent investments by Heineken mark the next step in its multi-year ambitions to digitize its production facilities to reduce waste and increase efficiency. The CPG earlier developed a Connected Brewery Ecosystem that combines IoT, analytics, and robotics to optimize manufacturing and distribution, providing employees with increased visibility into operations.
In this most recent partnership, it makes sense that Heineken will leverage not only Siemens’ technology but also its advisory services. The biggest challenges when it comes to implementing digital twins at consumer goods organizations are less about the technology and more about change management and business silos, Alfonso Velosa, Gartner research VP of emerging technology, shared with CGT in the past.
“The leading-edge organizations not only have clear objectives, [but also] business process transformation with clear metrics at both the executive level and at the local level,” he noted.
