Coopers Brewery has geared up for an expected rise in demand for its traditional Pale Ale, Sparkling Ale, Mild Ale and Stout products with the opening of a second bottling line at its Regency Park, South Australia, brewery.
The new line, established at a cost of $16.5 million, forms the major plank of a $20 million capital expansion undertaken by the iconic brewer this year. This year's capital purchases mean the company has invested more than $150 million in the plant since it was opened in 1998.
The brewer's managing director, Dr Tim Cooper, said the second line would increase flexibility within the brewery as well as position the company for further sales growth.
"Having a second bottling line will reduce down-time and provide Coopers with the additional capacity it requires to handle increasing demand," he said.
"Our staff and contractors have worked exceptionally hard to complete the installation and have the line up and running in time for the Christmas and the summer season."
The new line, supplied by German packaging equipment giant KHS, has a capacity of 1200 bottles a minute and is being dedicated to Coopers' traditional products including Pale Ale, Sparkling Ale, Mild Ale and Stout, which make up more than 70 per cent of the brewer's bottle volume.
KHS chief executive Professor Dr Matthias Niemeyer, attended the commissioning of the new line, which was officially inaugurated by the South Australian governor, Rear Admiral Kevin Scarce.
The plant's existing bottling line will be switched over to bottle other beers produced at Coopers, including the International brands Sapporo and Carlsberg, as well as other packaging formats.
Dr Cooper said the latest expansion came as Coopers enjoyed one of the longest periods of growth in the company's history.
"Our beer sales volume has grown by an average of 9.8 per cent per year for the past 20 years," he said.
"In the first five months of this financial year, growth in beer volume has been 4.6 per cent.
"We now have about 4.5 per cent of the national beer market and continue to grow, despite a period of declining beer sales nationally.
"This new line will enable us to support our ongoing growth as well as the addition of other brands in our beer and home-brew portfolios."