Energy IQ: Hawaii's largest craft brewer pursues grid independence

Maui Brewing Co.

What if you could drink your favorite craft beer while also helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions? If you are a fan of the Maui Brewing Company, that’s kind of what you’ve been doing. 

Maui Brewing Co. was established in 2005 with the goal of brewing authentic, local Hawaiian craft beer. Or as the company's website describes their product, they make beers "crafted with passion from the heart of paradise."

Less than 15 years later, Maui Brewing Co. is now the largest craft brewer in the state, producing more than 53,000 barrels of beer annually. 

Maui Brewing Co
Maui Brewing Co., seen here, is pursuing grid independence in an effort to operate in a fully sustainable manner.

Beyond brewing seven of their beers throughout the year and releasing "a ton of" limited release beers, the brewery holds a national recognition that truly sets it apart from the crowded craft brewery field: It is one of the few breweries of its size in the United States that is on track to be off-grid by the end of 2019. 

'Hop-hop hooray!' to craft beer and sustainable manufacturing processes 

Maui Brewing Co. started their journey towards grid independence a couple of years ago with two objectives.

"We wanted to lead by example and show that you can be a manufacturer and operate in a sustainable manner," said Garrett Marrero, CEO and Founder of Maui Brewing Co. "Moreover, the ability to estimate the cost of electricity is a competitive edge for our brewery. We are not subject to ups and downs in fuel pricing anymore with the system we have built." 

According to Daithi Magee, General Manager of King Power Systems, a Cummins-authorized dealer in Hawaii, Marrero and the team at Maui Brewing Co. have selected the right mix of technologies in their quest to be a fully sustainable operation. 

Maui Brewing Company - Sustainability - Cummins"Maui Brewing Co. has intelligently mixed a set of technologies in their journey towards going off-grid. At the center of these technologies is a hybrid system featuring solar photovoltaic cells, stationary batteries and Cummins generators," said Magee. "An array of solar cells has the production capacity of 1,200 kilowatts to charge the stationary batteries throughout Hawaii’s 3,000+ hours of sunshine per year. When there is need for more power, Cummins generators charge the batteries and power the facilities. The Cummins generators were chosen because of the PowerCommand 3300 control, robust Cummins QSL9 engine, Tier 4 emissions rating, and of course the unparalleled dealer support we offer." 

In the end, the brewery - through the help of this setup - minimizes its carbon footprint, develops the ability to estimate its cost of electricity and protects its operations from grid related power outages.

"As we listen to craft beer drinkers' desires and bring them the best beer possible, we will continue to contribute to the local economy and lead the way in sustainability-minded manufacturing processes," added Garrett. 

Visit Maui Brewing Co. to learn more about their journey towards grid independence. 

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Aytek Yuksel - Cummins Inc

Aytek Yuksel

Aytek Yuksel is the Content Marketing Leader for Cummins Inc., with a focus on Power Systems markets. Aytek joined the Company in 2008. Since then, he has worked in several marketing roles and now brings you the learnings from our key markets ranging from industrial to residential markets. Aytek lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with his wife and two kids.

Cummins Custompaks are being used for water management as Thailand struggles with its water crisis

CustomPak on site

Water crisis

Sixty Cummins Inc. CustomPaks are in service in Thailand as part of a critical water management plan aimed at easing the country’s water crisis – a crisis that has caused enormous economic and social damage and stirred conflict among communities.

Over the past several decades, Thailand has continually faced water problems caused by severe drought. Water reserves in dams and reservoirs are insufficient while water resources are often contaminated with toxins caused by urban communities and the industrial and agricultural sectors.

Severe flooding is a threat, too, at a time when the realities of climate change are hanging over the country.

As a result, the allocation of precious water resources, which must be shared among various stakeholders including new and existing industry, large and small agriculture, and cities and villages has become a flashpoint.

Kittithanapat Engineering Co. (KTP), has been involved in the water management system since 1996, working closely with authorities such as the Royal Irrigation Department, Department of Water Resources, Bangkok Metropolitan Authority and others.

CustomPaks on site

600 hp CustomPaks

To help KTP meet its often urgent requirements, Cummins DKSH (Thailand) has recently supplied 60 Australian-built CustomPaks – 45 powered by Cummins’ X15 engine rated at 600 hp, and 15 powered by the QSL9 rated at 325 hp. These fully self-contained powerpacks are emissions certified to Tier 3.

The CustomPaks are coupled to hydraulically-driven, large-volume submersible water pumps sourced by KTP from US company Moving Water Industries (MWI); KTP is the exclusive distributor in Thailand for these MWI Hydroflo pumps.

Prior to Cummins’ involvement, KTP was using another diesel engine brand but service support wasn’t up to the standard required.

Long-serving KTP engineer Kittisak Thanasoot says Cummins DKSH’s reputation for technical and aftersales support along with the reliability of the Cummins product were a key reason behind KTP’s decision to specify the CustomPaks for the Royal Irrigation Department.

The ability of Cummins DKSH to respond to short delivery times was also important.

“Supplying large quantities of high horsepower diesel engines for emergency situations such as flash flooding can be a challenge for KTP,” says Kittisak Thanasoot.

“Responding to the needs of the government agencies to manage such problems in a timely manner and with least impact on communities, KTP has found the answer in our partnership with Cummins DKSH.”

Power, pride and passion

Parked semi truck

The switch back to Cummins power has been beneficial for iconic New Zealand company Uhlenberg Haulage. It's all about whole-of-life costs.

Uhlenberg Haulage is closing in on 60 years in business, having been founded in 1966 by Mike and Carol Uhlenberg.

Based in Eltham, Taranaki, in New Zealand’s North Island, the operation is today owned and operated by their sons Chris, Daryl and Tony Uhlenberg.

Describing the Uhlenbergs as “old school family truckies”, Daryl talks about the company’s time-honored journey with a definite tone of pride, especially the work of his parents in laying the foundations for what is today an iconic fleet in its own right.

Cummins Inc. made its debut in the Uhlenberg fleet in 1971 with an NH250 powering a second-hand Kenworth K923 used in logging. A second Kenworth, a new W924 with a Cummins NTC335, followed soon after hauling an LPG tanker.

The Uhlenberg operation today comprises 40 prime movers and a variety of trailing gear to cater for the myriad of a jobs the fleet is involved in.

A number of Peterbilts feature in the fleet although Kenworth is now the brand of choice with six new units to be delivered over the next 12 months to cater for business growth.

Cummins’ X15 Euro 5 engine rated at 550 or 600 hp is the preferred power specification, with 18 red engines currently in the fleet.

Uhlenberg family in front of truck

Whole-of-life support

“The switch to Cummins has been a very good experience for us. We have nothing but praise for the Cummins organization,” says Daryl.

“The whole-of-life picture is the key thing for us and we’ve got that nailed with the support we get from Cummins – parts availability, scheduled maintenance, life expectancy and in-frame rebuilds.

“So the red engines turn up, we run them to life, which is 900,000 to 1.2 million kilometers, and then Cummins does an in-frame overhaul in a timely manner. If there’s an issue, parts and support are close by.

“The support we get from Cummins Palmerston North is fantastic, second to none.”

Daryl recently looked under a Kenworth that was in the workshop for a service and was surprised to see no oil leaking from the one-million-kilometer X15. “I remember when I was a fitter we had to wear a raincoat when working under a truck,” he jokes.

Fuel agnostic

Acknowledging that the push to decarbonize is now “very real”, Daryl likes the idea of Cummins’ fuel agnostic concept where one base internal combustion engine, optimized to run on diesel, can also be customized to run on ultra-low and zero-carbon fuels like renewable natural gas and hydrogen.

“My father was a pioneer of linehaul trucking in New Zealand and he always embraced new technology. He was never scared of it,” he says.

“I tend to be a little more cautious but I can see where a 500 hp natural gas or hydrogen engine would work for us in short haul applications,” he admits. “We’re certainly willing to look closely at these alternative fuel technologies when suitable infrastructure is in place.”

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