BLACKBURN brewer Daniel Thwaites has never been short of bottle - especially when facing major decisions affecting operational efficiency and customer care.

So, when confronted with a bottling dilemma, following the closure of the brewery's long-term 'line' down in Oxfordshire, there was only one thing to do - buy it up and bring it north!

Traditionally, Thwaites beers were always bottled at Brakspears in Henley-on-Thames until a few months ago when the Oxfordshire brewery ceased trading.

Facing a serious 'loss of bottle' at a critical time, Thwaites wasted no time in finding a solution, moving swiftly to acquire the plant - lock, stock and, well, barrel.

There followed an impressive exercise in logistics which saw the whole of the Brakspears bottling operation, complete with existing customers, transferred to the Blackburn site.

Head brewer Steve Fielding explained: "With our continuity of supply to customers under threat, it was important to move quickly and get our operation up and running as soon as possible. We bought the line in its entirety and re-assembled it in the two rooms we customised to receive it. One room houses a filtration unit to get the beer ready for bottling and below it is the actual bottling and packaging hall.

"It was a very tight window of time to work with, especially as Christmas came in the middle of it, but with the help of a great team, the mission was accomplished."

Elson's Construction of Burton-on-Trent were the project managers, with Graham Brindle directing engineering operations for Thwaites. Steve Fielding and Lance Williams oversaw the technical brewing side of the project.

Several months down the line, the bottling plant is very much up and running and, as Steve explains, has added a new dimension to the brewery's activities and services.

"The line tends to run at 35-40 bottles per minute, depending on the size of the bottles being filled. It's very flexible, able to fill the standard range of 500ml, 330ml and 275ml bottles, and can take various shapes and sizes.

"With different change-over pipes and speeds, we can fulfil whatever bottles the customer wants. We use modern 'sterile fill' techniques, passing through very fine sterile filters which don't involve pasteur- isation, but maintain the quality and a long shelf life for the beer"

The sophisticated equipment also applies the necessary labelling, front, back and neck, for the bottles along with all the packaging for the finished product. Indeed, Thwaites has the resources to provide for any style and shape of packaging required by the brewing industry.

Steve said: "We have the capacity to produce, in 500ml bottles, the equivalent of 35 to 40 barrels a day. It's 'small beer' in terms of the daily output of Thwaites, but it gives us control over an area we didn't have before and the potential to develop new business as a spin-off."

John McGowan brought his many years of experience to bear in managing the bottling operation. His supervisory skills have ensured the bottling line made the smooth transition from assembly to efficient operation after its journey north.

Apart from meeting the demands of Thwaites' own bottled beers, such as Lancaster Bomber, Daniel's Hammer, Lancashire Brown Ale, the enterprising East Lancashire brewery also bottles ale from as far afield as Cornwall, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire.

Another bonus for the 'line' is the creation of employment opportunities within the brewery. New staff have been taken on to operate the line, with the potential for further expansion as orders grow.

Thwaites is one of very few breweries which now produces all the different kinds of beer on one site - cask beer, keg beer, canned beer and now in bottles.