From 2007 to 2014, the Tapmaster from brewery group Swinkels Family Brewers was unique around the world. In recent years, however, competitors have launched similar integrated draught beer systems on the market. That’s why, with Ctac’s support, Palm came up with SmartTap, a draught beer system with smart sensors which allows Palm to regain the lead on the market. Mark van Oppens, Sales Manager On-trade at Palm, talks about the origin of this innovative Internet-of-Things solution.
Customer
Palm
Label
Innovation
Reading time
3
Internet of Things
SAP Cloud
Innovation
The challenge
Early detection of tapping problems
Over the years, the large breweries have all released their own draught systems with integrated cooling. This is what inspired the further innovation at Palm, says Mark van Oppens: “We want to take the lead again with the Tapmaster. That’s why we want to be able to monitor the temperature of the keg refrigerator. When our technical department receives a report about tap problems, the cause is often related to temperature or pressure. For example, the cooling system fails due to a power outage, or someone has left the refrigerator door open. This may cause the temperature of the beer to rise and make it impossible for the bar staff to serve quality beer. The consequences of such an event may have a long-lasting impact.”
The solution
Sensors report deviations
Ctac came up with the idea to equip the Tapmaster with sensors which measure the pressure and temperature in the Tapmaster. The system recording the measurements will send an alert when the readings deviate too much from the reference values. At that moment both Palm’s technical department and the bar staff will receive a message via an app specifically developed for this purpose by Ctac.
