Many thanks to the The English Whisky Guild (EWG) for choosing our Global Technical Centre in Burton-Upon-Trent for its inaugural meeting of the Guild’s Founding Associate Members.
It was great to meet up with both the Guild distillery and Associate members to discuss the shape of the English Whisky Industry and opportunities to collaboratively build and grow the sector.

The EWG represents a range of distilleries, both large and small reflecting the industry’s breadth. You can find out more about what they do here.

Along with Briggs, other Founding Associate Members of the EWG include: Ad Gefrin Distillery, East London Liquor Company, Henstone Distillery, The Cotswold Distilling Company, White Peak Distillery, The Lakes Distillery, The Spirit of Manchester, The Oxford Artisan Distillery, Spirit of Yorkshire, Howdens, Ellis IP, Close Brothers, Ranking Cork, Cooper King, and Simpsons Malt.

Alex Adams-Waite (Graduate Process Engineer, Technical Sales) has successfully completed a comprehensive six-month course with the Institute of Brewing and Distilling (IBD), earning a well-deserved Distinction in the General Certificate in Distilling (GCD). This achievement was realised through an examination, signifying a substantial step in Alex’s professional accreditation within the distilling industry.

Balancing this certification alongside his responsibilities at Briggs, Alex shared insights into the IBD that shape the distilling landscape. The GCD not only imparts a profound understanding of core distillation processes but also applies them within the broader framework of the distilled spirits industry. Alex emphasised the diverse range of raw materials, from grains for whisky to agave for tequila and molasses for rum. The programme explores fermentation theory, maturation processes, and quality considerations, offering a holistic perspective on the industry’s intricate processes.

When asked about the application of this new knowledge in the workplace, Alex expressed that it is primarily for awareness. Whether addressing client enquiries or discussing the base ingredients, the certification equips him with a deeper understanding of the distilled spirits industry processes as a whole. Looking toward the future, Alex has ambitious plans for further education and professional development activities within the distilled spirits sector.

Congratulations once again Alex on this fantastic achievement. 

Briggs of Burton received the ‘Supplier of the Year’ award at the ISPE United Kingdom Affiliate Ltd Dinner in Coventry. Professor Jonathan Van-Tam presented it amid 500 industry influencers, affirming our global support to pharmaceutical manufacturers.

This award is a testament to our dedication in supporting pharmaceutical manufacturers globally. At Briggs of Burton we take pride in our role of designing, engineering, and constructing bespoke pharmaceutical systems and skids all from our purpose-built Pharmaceutical Systems Assembly facility in Burton on Trent.

A huge thank you to the ISPE United Kingdom Affiliate Ltd for considering us as worthy winners.

About Briggs of Burton

If you have eaten or drunk it there is a chance that Briggs of Burton has helped to produce it.

Briggs are the engineers behind supplying the equipment, engineering and automation to the world’s largest food, alcoholic beverage, and pharmaceutical manufacturers

Today Briggs employs over 300 colleagues across six sites in the UK, Scotland, USA, Mexico, China, and Australia. The team deliver turnkey engineering projects for leading household brands covering North America, Europe, Central America, Africa, Australia, and Asia. Briggs’ benefits from a global network of stainless-steel manufacturing facilities, including their own located in Burton on Trent and Prestonpans, Scotland.

Briggs are actively developing sustainable engineering solutions, focusing on their customer’s requirements towards carbon neutrality. 

Briggs of Burton, Inc., a global leader in turnkey engineering and equipment solutions for the distilled spirits industry, has moved to a new, larger space in Louisville to accommodate its growing operations. Briggs opened its first Kentucky office in 2021 with two employees and has expanded to a team of five with more engineering positions set to open in the coming year.

“The bourbon market is growing and we want to be instrumental in futureproofing its success,” said Reay Dicks, VP of Engineering for the firm’s North American operations. “This move allows us to recruit more people, and serve more Kentucky distillers looking to expand production capacity and improve sustainability in bourbon production.”

The new office is located at 10200 Linn Station Road, Suite 225, near the I-64 Hurstbourne interchange. Briggs of Burton has more than 285 years of experience in the distilled spirits industry and 40 years of operation in North America. Its significant growth in the region, including work with Beam Suntory in Kentucky, is driven by a talented and dedicated team, a rise in bourbon distillery projects, and the demand for innovative and sustainable practices. The Kentucky team can assist with any distillery project need from feasibility studies and conceptual design to detailed engineering and project management.

“Our team has the knowledge and expertise to help our customers achieve sustainability goals while maximizing their production volume,” said Kentucky Regional Sales Manager Ramiro Garza, who has extensive experience in the industry. “We’re proud to be members of the Kentucky Distillers Association and excited to continue helping Kentucky distillers deliver the best bourbon in the world.”

About Briggs of Burton

Briggs of Burton is a globally-trusted name in delivering a diverse range of expansion projects, specializing in sustainable engineering, innovative design, and traditional handcrafted copper distillation equipment. With headquarters in the United Kingdom and two U.S. offices, Briggs of Burton has worked with some of the world’s largest distilled spirits producers in bourbon, rum, whisky, scotch and tequila.

To schedule a visit at the Kentucky office or request a quote, please contact Ramiro Garza at ramiro.garza@briggsplc.com or call 502-881-1257. For more information on Briggs of Burton, visit briggsplc.com

Thank you to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) Food and Drink Engineering Committee and Giles Hartill CEng FIMechE for visiting our Global Technical Centre last week.

George Crombie and Robert Buxton hosted the committee, providing an exclusive tour of our Global Technical Centre and Pharmaceutical Systems Assembly (PSA) facility, demonstrating our continued investment towards UK Engineering and Manufacturing.

The committee were particularly impressed by Briggs’ global reach and the positive impact they have created in the Food, Beverage and Pharmaceutical industries delivering large scale projects in various locations around the world offering sustainable engineering and equipment solutions to several blue chip clients.

About Briggs of Burton

If you have eaten or drunk it there is a chance that Briggs of Burton has helped to produce it.

Briggs are the engineers behind supplying the equipment, engineering and automation to the world’s largest food, alcoholic beverage, and pharmaceutical manufacturers

Today Briggs employs over 300 colleagues across six sites in the UK, Scotland, USA, Mexico, China, and Australia. The team deliver turnkey engineering projects for leading household brands covering North America, Europe, Central America, Africa, Australia, and Asia. Briggs’ benefits from a global network of stainless-steel manufacturing facilities, including their own located in Burton on Trent and Prestonpans, Scotland.

Briggs are actively developing sustainable engineering solutions, focusing on their customer’s requirements towards carbon neutrality. 

On Friday the 1st of September, Briggs of Burton hosted the central committee meeting at the Global Technical Center for members of the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE). 

ISPE is the global industry leader in connecting pharmaceutical knowledge to deliver manufacturing and supply chain innovation, operational excellence and regulatory insights to enhance industry efforts to develop, manufacture and reliably deliver quality medicines to patients. 

Briggs of Burton have recognised the ISPE as a key enabler to access a network of contacts to grow our pharmaceutical market share. There are currently several people of the Briggs team who serve on the committee and hold memberships with ISPE. 

The meeting at the Global Technical Center (GTC) was organised by Sonia Ganatra, an ISPE committee member and part of the Briggs Marketing Team. Sonia’s interests lie in both pharma and marketing, and her role within the committee is to facilitate their marketing and outreach. Briggs will benefit from this by raising awareness to the ISPE community of our pharmaceutical capabilities and the new Pharmaceutical Systems Assembly (PSA), highlighting us a potential venue for future ISPE events. 

Max Flannery, ran the meeting on behalf of Briggs, and has now joined the ISPE central region committee: “As the recently appointed Pharma Sales Lead at Briggs of Burton, I’m delighted to join the ISPE as a committee member. This collaboration offers us a valuable platform for connecting with industry peers, customers, and suppliers. Being part of the central committee is a significant opportunity for us to gain insights and proudly represent Briggs as dedicated Pharma Ambassadors within the ISPE community.”

We look forward to hosting the UK ISPE in early 2024 for a tour of the new PSAfacility.

To celebrate National Manufacturing Day (NMD) on the 28th of September, Briggs of Burton will welcome 20students from John Taylor High School in Burton at the Global Technical Center for a variety of ScienceTechnology Engineering and Math (STEM) activities.

NMD is a chance for UK manufacturers show their local community, schools and colleges behind the scenesaccess to a sector of global importance that plays a pivotal role in the economic life of local communities acrossthe UK. The day itself will be a national celebration of UK manufacturing and a chance to raise the profile of thesector. 

NMD will demonstrate the value of jobs and in particular apprenticeships in our sector to showcase manufacturing as a future career. 

The Manufacturer, an industry publication providing manufacturing news, has today released the nominees for the MX awards. 

In partnership with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), the MXawards celebrate manufacturing excellence.

We’re excited to announce that Briggs of Burton has been nominated in the International Trade category! The award application highlights our continued global growth, entry into new markets and delivering large Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) projects for many of the biggest breweries, distilleries, food and pharmaceutical companies. 

This nomination is a testament to our team’s unwavering commitment toexcellence, innovation, and global collaboration.

Congratulations once again to the entire team! Thank you for your hard work and dedication which continues to help us be recognised by major institutions.

Read the official press release here

Michael Oates’ journey at Briggs started just over five years ago, and his recent attainment of chartered status from the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) marks a significant milestone in his career. Progressing from his initial role as Graduate Process Engineer, Michael has become an integral part of the team. Overseeing projects from design to commissioning across a spectrum of our industries including brewing, distilling, and pharmaceuticals. 

IChemE, a well-known professional institution, has a profound impact on the field of chemical engineering and its members. It serves as a guiding force, not only recognizing excellence through chartered status but also offering comprehensive training and support. 

Attaining chartered status involves a three-step process: 

The first step entails building a strong educational foundation.

The second phase is Initial Professional Development (IPD), with Briggs being part of the Accredited Company Training Scheme (ACTS), Michael was able to successfully complete an ACTS, and was able to complete the IPD stage. 

The final stage is the Professional Review: where qualified assessors,themselves chartered members of IChemE, evaluated his competency and commitment. 

Michael’s proudest achievements while working at Briggs include the ShanghaiBacchus project, which was a two-year commitment, from detailed design tocommissioning, or how Michael put it “the whole shebang.” Overcomingchallenges like working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic in China, hereviewed complex software documentation and crafted exhaustivecommissioning documents, Michael was key in ensuring the project’s success. 

Michael’s aspirations remain centred on continual growth and learning. He envisions sharpening his engineering skills and making meaningful contributions to his field. 

Michael would like to thank his mentor, Mark Phillips – Technical ProcessManager. As the scheme manager, Mark has played a pivotal role in Michael’ssuccess, offering unwavering support and guidance throughout. 

Mark had this to say about Michael’s achievement: 

“Huge congratulations to Michael on this fantastic achievement. Our relationshipwith the IChemE is hugely important to support our valued team, to get charteredand become well rounded chemical engineers. It is also great to see Briggsreceive a 4-year re-accreditation from the IChemE, further supporting our effortsin recruiting the next generation of engineers; like Michael, who is the firstengineer to gain chartership via completing the ACTS.” 

Well done Michael from everyone at Briggs!