New Belgium Brewery, headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, is one of the largest craft breweries in the United States, renowned for its flagship beer, Fat Tire Amber Ale. A Certified B Corporation*, New Belgium Brewery is highly committed to sustainability, upholding strong environmental and social standards, minimising waste, conserving water and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Grundfos NBSE Pumps with MLE Motors. Setup in a Cascade system.
The situation
Although the brewery continually invested in cutting-edge technologies, their ammonia and evaporative cooling systems – essential for regulating temperatures during brewing – relied on outdated, inefficient and difficult to maintain pumps. With their original pumps discontinued and production demands at an all-time high – New Belgium Brewery needed a reliable solution to modernise its systems and minimise disruptions.
Denver Industrial recommended Grundfos NBSE end-suction pumps powered by a Grundfos MLE motor with an integrated VFD, as it was an intelligent solution that adapts pump speed according to demand to achieve significant energy savings.
However, New Belgium was unaware of the capabilities of VFD solutions and was just seeking a reliable upgrade to improve system efficiency and uptime. They were sceptical about the ability of MLE to manage controls without the support of a dedicated PLC (Programmable Logic Controller), which is usually required to provide insight about what is always going on in the plant.
The solution
With the brewery team on board, four pumps were ordered, and a single-day switchover was scheduled. The installation crew completed piping in the morning, followed by programming and commissioning in the afternoon with support from Grundfos and the local partner.
Compared to traditional installations that require communication cables running back to the PLC from each pump, the cascade functionality of the Grundfos MLE eliminates lengthy cable runs. The setup requires only one wire with three conductors and a daisy-chained communication wire between the four pumps. Programming the cascade operation for all four pumps took just 30 minutes.
Once operational, the system demonstrated seamless performance during flow rate tests. The brewery achieved 100% capacity with three NBSE pumps, leaving the fourth as a redundant backup. Additionally, redundant master controls and pressure sensors ensured fail-safe operation, reducing downtime risks.
We've seen challenges over the years with equipment growing old and not finding the correct replacement parts. We're running a series of new Grundfos pumps with VFDs in our cooling system for ammonia on our evaporative coolers, and we haven't needed to rent chillers for the whole year and saved upwards of USD 30,000 a month just on that for the rental.
Canning line at the New Belgium Plant in Ft. Collins, CO.
The outcome
New Belgium Brewery’s new system has run smoothly since August 2024 and resulted in:
Increased efficiency: The brewery now achieves full capacity with fewer pumps, saving energy and reducing maintenance, contributing to their sustainability goals.
Simplified maintenance and operations: The NBSE pump design allows for faster seal replacements, minimising downtime for repair and maintenance. The elimination of the PLC system also reduces the complexity of managing the cooling system, requiring no third-party components as the built-in PID controller handles all the logic.
Redundancy and reliability: Redundant controls and master pumps ensure uninterrupted <operations.
- Cost Savings: The new system also eliminated the need for rental chillers, saving New Belgium Brewery approximately USD 30,000 per month during peak temperatures. Simplified system controls have also reduced operational costs.
Thrilled with the results, New Belgium Brewery has recognised Grundfos and their local partner as their go-to pump suppliers. This upgrade also aligned with New Belgium’s overarching goals of reducing its carbon footprint, conserving water and improving operational efficiency. Beyond cooling systems, the brewery is exploring other areas for potential upgrades, including boiler feed pumps, acid dosing systems and CO2 recovery.
Grundfos has stepped up with their innovative pump solutions. We've seen better cooling, improved flow rates and significant cost savings. This system has saved us from costly rentals and downtime. It’s been a game-changer for our operations!
* B Corp certification is to business what Fair Trade certification is to coffee or USDA Organic certification is to milk. B Corps are certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet the highest verified standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.
Grundfos supplied:
NBSE pumps – split-coupled end-suction pumps with NEMA (National Electrical Manufacturers Association) standard MLE motors
ANSI (American National Standards Institute) flange fittings
Case story info:
- Location: Colorado, United States of America
- Customer: New Belgium Brewery
- Sources: The facts in this story come from VJ Hartman, Maintenance Technical Specialist at New Belgium Brewery in 2024 and 2025.