Plzeňský Prazdroj (part of Asahi Europe & International) is constructing a zero-energy warehouse at its Pilsen brewery, home of the world famous Pilsner Urquell beer. The building’s innovative racking and shelving system saves space, reduces the cost of transporting goods and reduces CO2 emissions – in line with AEI’s Legacy 2030 programme.
The 10,000m2 warehouse’s cutting-edge racking and shelving system will lead to more efficient storage and faster dispatching of beer in bottles and cans. Goods will be transported from the packaging line to the warehouse via an automated rail system, then automatically transported from the storage area to the dispatch area. Goods will then be put into racks by crane stackers, which are currently under construction.
Construction began in 2021 and should be completed by the end of this year. The warehouse will have a capacity of about 16,000 pallets (around 18 million beers), over double the amount of pallet capacity in Plzeňský Prazdroj’s current warehouse. In the future, the brewery wants to build a new packaging line for returnable glass bottles, further boosting the circular economy.
František Holý, Warehouse Manager of Plzeňský Prazdroj, says, “The new sheathed, self-supporting rack warehouse in Pilsen will be the most advanced warehouse we have in our breweries. The building will be zero-energy in the long term, we plan to install photovoltaic panels on its roof. On top of that, the crane stackers will be equipped with recuperation technology which will save energy. We are already thinking about the second phase and extending the warehouse to double the current storage capacity.”
