Quality, consistency and sustainability

Sponsored article: HEINEKEN SmartDispense®

Sustainability and reducing waste are big concerns for independent operator Lisini Pub Company.

The group, which operates five sites across Lanarkshire, has adopted a wide range of sustainable business practices as it pursues its goal of net zero across the company. 

“Sustainability is very much in our DNA,” Lisini director Siobhan Edwards told SLTN last month, during a visit to the company’s Dalziel Park Hotel on the outskirts of Motherwell. 

“With us it’s very much about being community-led and sustainable. We were the first pub group to be on the road to net zero. And that was very early coming out of Covid.”

This year, Lisini’s sustainability journey has included the installation of HEINEKEN UK’s SmartDispense® system across all of its sites. 

A long-term customer of HEINEKEN, Lisini took some convincing to install the system, having already tried an early version of the technology in its Uddingston venue, Angels, almost a decade ago. 

“With us it’s very much about being community-led and sustainable.”

However, in-depth conversations with the HEINEKEN team as well as independent advisors in the trade convinced the Lisini team that the SmartDispense® system was the perfect fit for the company’s sustainability goals, being able to reduce wastage while maintaining beer and cider quality. 

Finally, there was a cross-company meeting between the senior Lisini team and HEINEKEN representatives. 

“We had a team meeting and we involved our whole team, because our maintenance guys had a lot of work to do. There was true team collaboration with the brand owner,” said Siobhan.

Having first been introduced in 2014, SmartDispense® was designed specifically to provide venues with cold, fresh pints while reducing wastage and fobbing. 

The most up to date version of the system, now in place in Lisini’s units, requires only a six-week line clean – performed by a HEINEKEN technician – while reducing the amount of water and chemicals used. 

It’s set to make a dramatic impact to the bottom line for Lisini, with procurement manager Alex Quinn estimating the company should save over £40,000 a year between reducing beer wastage as well as water and chemicals down the drain and man hours saved through the reduction in line cleaning. 

Energy usage, too, is lower, with the company now spending less money on chilling its cellars. 

None of which would be worth contemplating if the quality of the beer was taking a hit, but Alex stated the company’s regular customers – some of whom are sticklers for their beer quality – have never been happier. 

“It’s down to the customer at the end of the day,” he said. 

“As long as they’re happy, as long as the quality is there, what more can you ask for? And it’s making us a huge saving. Every margin is tight now, so you’ve got to think about ‘how can I save money every way I can?’”

HEINEKEN UK’s James Woodman ® said the SmartDispense® system has evolved considerably over the past twelve years. 

“It’s definitely changed from when it first got into the market,” he told SLTN. 

“It’s a much more streamlined, efficient system. Originally, when they first came into the market they were fairly large, fairly cumbersome pieces of kit. 

“I think they were referred to as the ‘octopus of the cellar’ at one point. Now they are single modules on the wall, looking after one product at a time.

“You could probably align it to an iPhone, where we’ve developed it significantly from where it was to what it is now.”

James said there are a number of advantages HEINEKEN SmartDispense® can deliver for customers in the trade. 

Firstly – and above all – there is quality and consistency.

“We know that in the consumer experience quality is getting more and more important,” said James. 

“And so to make sure that quality is consistent is super important. 

“We know that just under 60% of consumers will walk out of a pub if the pint’s not good, and they’ll go somewhere else. So that’s hugely important to us.”

A significant reduction in wastage – as demonstrated at Lisini – is another major factor, with James stating that a ten-tap outlet could save thousands of pints-worth of water, beer and cider in the course of the year. 

With HEINEKEN taking care of the line cleaning, there’s also a considerable saving on time. 

“And there are other elements like safety,” James added. 

“Because you’re not line cleaning you don’t have to deal with chemicals in your cellar, because we do that for you. 

“And ease of operations like changing the keg as well – it’s super simple. Instead of having to go in, taking the keg coupler off, put the new one on, bleed the cellar buoy, turn the gas back on, you literally go in, take the keg coupler off one, put it onto the next one, and you press a button and you’re out the door. It’s super efficient that way.” 

Operators can also be assured that the system is being well maintained. 

Every time a technician carries out a line cleaning they will also do a 54-point check – essentially an MOT-style assessment – of the system to make sure everything is running exactly the way it should be. 

And the system continues to evolve and improve through continued investment from HEINEKEN UK. 

“Future developments will focus on helping operators better understand their own business and allowing us to better understand the performance in the venue and the performance of the systems and kit,” said James. 

“We are forever evolving it. We need to. I can’t say what’s coming down the road, but it’s gamechanging.”