Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60Brewers have benefitted from one huge advance in UK freight over the last few years, and that’s the growth of the pallet networks. By linking local hauliers together into a ‘hub and spoke’ network, they allow co-operation and massive benefits of scale. The local haulier collects pallets each day in their area, ships them to a central ‘hub’ each night, bringing back pallets for local delivery tomorrow. There are at least 7 major networks operating in the UK, and the total number of pallets is now up to around 70,000 per night! Even with the ‘double decker’ lorries now mostly used, that’s getting on for 2,000 lorries per night taking pallets into and out of the network hubs. Most of the networks hubs are in the West Midlands area, and if you’ve ever been on the midlands motorways about 8pm, you will have seen them streaming in from all directions. Once in the hub, each lorry is photographed and every pallet is scanned, so as to give traceability, before unloading, then reloading with pallets to go back to the haulier’s local area. Everything from manufactured goods to machinery and even TV’s are shipped this way and because it is so efficient and competitive, the cost is very low at £35 to £45 per pallet (more in outlying areas of UK). Traceability has now advanced to the point where some networks allow you to track a pallet in near real time, so that you know when it is delivered. These systems are pretty unique to the UK, because of our modest size, high urbanisation, wealth of local hauliers and good motorway networks. Some networks are now expanding to mainland Europe to establish similar models there, especially in Germany. UK brewers have benefitted hugely from the networks. Most smaller brewers use them to ship their beers into wholesalers and also to national logistics networks, such as KNDL, Tradeteam and Carlsberg. As far as cask ale goes, a happy accident means that 18 x full 9 gallon casks fit nicely on a Euro pallet (cheap), which weighs just under 1 tonne. The networks are also the lifeblood of inter-brewery trading, commonly called ‘beer swaps’. There is a compelling business case for smaller brewers to trade pallets of cask ale with each other, and it currently represents over 3% of the total sector output. Around 300 brewers are thought to trade this way, shipping over 200,000 casks per year to each other. Although the availability of low cost pallet shipping makes these trades even more attractive, there are 2 main problems restricting brewers – the lack of a ‘marketplace’ for the activity, and the potential for cask losses. Beerswaps Ltd has been founded to provide a unique solution to both of these problems, providing a FREE online marketplace and for the first time allowing brewers to use ECasks for these trades. Another dimension has been added, which is to act as an optional ‘invoice hub’, so that brewers have the chance to trade more flexibly by buying from one brewer and selling to another, so avoiding the need to always do direct swaps. 12 BREWING & BEVERAGE INDUSTRIES BUSINESS Industry news admin@beerswaps.co.uk For more information email: Pallet networks for UK ale brewers Will ESOS change post-Brexit? “Amidst all the post-Brexit uncertainty,” says UK energy adviser Will Todd, “one thing is guaranteed - for brewery energy managers the landscape will be one of government spending cuts and more taxes. “Most of our climate change legislation raises taxes, and the government is unlikely to do anything that will reduce that status,” explains Todd, MD of CarbonArchitecture.co.uk which advises high-energy users such as the brewing industry on energy efficiencies, benchmarking and tax implications. “The government has used the EU as a convenient scapegoat for the climate change taxes that have helped make various UK industries less competitive, whereas in reality that tax burden is to a large degree UK imposed and within the power of our government to change. They just aren't minded to do so because it's a big revenue spinner.” Will ESOS change post-Brexit? “The ESOS (Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme) was implemented in response to an EU directive and seeks to drive businesses towards energy efficient behaviour and practices – think of it as ‘ISO50001-Lite’. But it raises no taxes, so its future in four years’ time when it's next due will depend on any value that the government perceives in ESOS at that time. ISO50001 is most likely to be the common ground across the international community. “The UK has been a key force in the liberalisation of energy markets in the EU, but the question stands as to whether we will be allowed to continue to participate in the Energy Union. In either event it is unlikely we will have a say in the formulation of the rules. “Brexit could mean that the UK will be released from EU renewables targets and this will give the government more freedom to choose how to support - or phase out - renewable schemes. The EU Emissions Trading Scheme EU ETS affects large energy users and they will be keen to know the impact. “It is possible the UK may continue to operate in the EU ETS as do Norway, Lichtenstein and Iceland, but if the UK doesn’t participate then some arrangements will need to be made to ensure companies with large carbon reserves don’t miss out in the transition,” explains Todd. “Current international markets and currency uncertainties are likely to trigger short-term rises in energy costs, but for Brexit to have a long term impact on UK prices, it would need consequences like export tariffs on EU gas flowing to the UK.” he adds. www.carbonarchitecture.co.uk For more information visit: 12_Layout 1 28/07/2016 09:39 Page 1