Written by Zach Volkman (Beer30 by The 5th Ingredient)

When it comes to being a business owner, there’s probably no term that’s more important than ROI (return on investment). Your ROI is a key performance indicator on how profitable your brewery is, and if you want to be successful then a major key to that is being profitable. Naturally, with profitability being such a major factor in a brewery’s lifespan, brewery owners spend a lot of time searching for ways to drive their brewery’s ROI.

Every brewery software is different, and it’s important to choose one that has the features most beneficial to your operation. The differences found in each software will define if and how much of an ROI the brewery can get with the software. From material resource planning to process optimization and beyond, learn how the right software can help drive your brewery’s ROI.

Time Savings

As the old saying goes: “time is money.” Investing in a good software can help breweries save time in a variety of ways including:

1. Brewers can easily reference a single source of truth for brewery operations management, with instant visibility into inventory, tank statuses, fermentation profiles, and more.
2. You can keep all team members up to date and working productively with task management.
3. Eliminate time intensive double entry of purchasing and sales data using accounting integrations.
4. Streamline monthly data collection and eliminate manual calculations with excise tax reporting. 

Sales and Distribution

With real-time brewery inventory that is easily accessible and mobile friendly, your Sales Team members will know exactly what and when beers are available. This means that your team will never miss a sales opportunity due to unclear inventory availability or production timeline, can minimize overcommitments and confidently work through backorders when they occur, and have smooth transitions between seasonal or limited release brands. 

Inventory Management & Materials Resource Planning

Need help with inventory management and/or material resource planning? Say no more. When it comes to brewery software, some systems offer basic inventory management, while more advanced softwares will include MRP functionality to conserve cash flow, free up warehouse space, and keep ingredients fresh.

Cost of Goods Sold

Another area in which software can help improve your brewery’s ROI is with Cost of Goods Sold (COGS). Some softwares offer access to exact COGS for each brand and pack type. This allows brewers to gain visibility into profitability of each SKU that the brewery sells. In addition, brewers can identify issues and make better business decisions. 

Process Optimization

Some management software will help breweries with process optimization. Brewers can identify variances, opportunities for improvement, and problem areas in brewhouse efficiency, filtration/transfer yield, and packaging yield. 

Brewers also have the ability to analyze and understand key fermentation metrics and establish optimal cellar schedules. This leads to a minimization of tank turn time, which results in increased overall fermentation cellar capacity and also eliminates the need for further capital investment in tanks.

Quality Control

Some management softwares can also capture critical quality control data check points. It’s important to note that not all software will have this specific feature, so when doing your research keep this in mind. Brewers can use their software to identify and mitigate costly production mistakes and issues before they move further down the process and consume additional resources. Some softwares feature real time proactive notifications for brewing which allows the Head Brewer to be notified if a brew is out of specification. This gives them the ability to intervene immediately and potentially save a batch before it moves too far along in the process. 

In addition, a good brewery software will help you track yeast pitch, harvest, and propagation data and yeast genealogy from batch to batch. Brewers can easily develop a yeast management program to maximize repitching generations and minimize fresh pitch costs. Simultaneously, brewers can identify fermentation issues, such as lagging fermentation or under-attenuation, and proactively phase out a problematic yeast strain to prevent issues in subsequent batches. 

Brew More, Brew Better

The truth is that not all brewery software is built the same. Not all software has the above features that are specifically designed to help your brewery flourish – but Beer30 does. Beer30 all-in-one brewery management software was built for brewers, by brewers – and that’s what sets our software apart. If you’ve been searching for a software management system that will help you save time, increase profits and brew better beer, then schedule a Beer30 demo today!

After developing a passion for craft beer while studying at The University of Pennsylvania, Zach started his career in the beer industry at Ballast Point Brewing as a Process Engineer. Following Ballast Point, he joined O’Connor Brewing and worked a variety of roles including Director of Brewery Operations and COO. He joined The 5th Ingredient in October 2021, inspired to bring Beer30’s brew process and quality data tools to more breweries around the world.