Efficient Plant May 2018 - 37

feature | solution focus
MICHAEL REIBER KNOWS a thing or
two about food-and-beverage processing.
His accomplishments are many, including
being responsible for the design, construction, and operation of one of the largest
craft distilleries in the state of Wisconsin.
Thus, it wasn't surprising, several years ago,
that he received a call from a neighboring
distillery start-up seeking advice.
"Located near Madison, Dancing Goat
Distillery was a family business, with
great people and a great future," Reiber
noted. "They called me after the family
patriarch, Duane H. Maas, who had
built successful distilleries in eight
countries, passed on. I was happy
to offer my expertise."
Reiber's experience and
knowledge led to a complete
analysis and review of what
equipment would be required to
meet the goals and expectations
of the business. Switching to Miura
boilers was one of the first recommendations that came out of the study.
According to Reiber, who now serves
as COO of Dancing Goat, Cambridge, WI
(dancinggoat.com), steam quality is critical
in distillation, because it's what actually
makes the finished product. Since the
operation's previous boiler wouldn't achieve
what he felt was needed, the distillery ordered two LX-50 SGs boilers manufactured
by Miura, Atlanta (miuraboiler.com).
The quality of the steam, as well as the
consistency of steam pressure made the
Miura units the perfect fit for Dancing Goat.
They also provided benefits in the areas of
safety (see "Safer by Design" sidebar), productivity, maintainability, energy efficiency,
and environmental quality.

PRODUCTIVITY
Reiber pointed to various pieces of equipment installed at Dancing Goat that set the
operation apart from most distilleries. "In

MAY 2018

Dancing Goat's still-house operations include a 240-gal. Specific Mechanical Systems (Victoria, British Columbia) platform pot still, 1,200-gal. hot-liquor tank, and headframe CF-1,000 continuous-distillation-column still.

'SAFER BY DESIGN'

Miura's "Safer by Design" reputation was a critical factor in Mike
Reiber's choice of boilers for the Dancing Goat Distillery. Among
the things Reiber brought to the table were a focus on functionality,
maintenance and sanitation, and safety-always safety. "If equipment
doesn't meet those checkpoints," he stated, "I push back on vendors
and suppliers to find a better way."
As an example, Reiber described difficult-to-access equipment. "If
it's really hard to get to, people can get hurt, because they have to
reach into things," he observed. "With Miura, the design and layout of
all the touch points ensure that personnel don't come out with battle
scars, so to speak, on their arms."
Regarding process safety, Reiber noted that while the issue of
exploding boilers may be a "huge concern for everybody," he thinks
Miura's small-water-content feature minimizes the potential. As he
put it, "There's no fear of impending doom that the boiler's going to
explode and fly 800 feet into the residential area."
History seems to prove Reiber correct: With more than 140,000
units in operation worldwide, Miura has never had a pressure-vessel
explosion. According to the company, in light of its products' low water
content and unique boiler geometry, catastrophic vessel failure is
practically impossible.
For more information, visit miuraboiler.com.
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Efficient Plant May 2018