The Craft Beverage Boom Needs Automation Engineers
The American craft beverage industry has grown from a niche market into an economic powerhouse, with over 9,700 craft breweries, 2,800 craft distilleries, and hundreds of cideries and meaderies operating across the United States. What most people don't realize is that behind every perfectly carbonated IPA and every precisely distilled bourbon is an increasingly sophisticated automation infrastructure. As craft producers scale from taproom operations to regional and national distribution, they are investing heavily in process automation to maintain product consistency, improve efficiency, meet regulatory requirements, and reduce waste. This transition from manual artisan production to automated precision manufacturing is creating a unique career niche for automation professionals who understand both industrial controls and beverage science.
The brewing and distilling industry is projected to invest over $2.5 billion in automation equipment through 2028, according to market research from Mordor Intelligence. This includes brewhouse automation (mash tun temperature control, lauter tun runoff optimization, boil kettle management), cellar automation (fermentation temperature and pressure monitoring, carbonation control, yeast management), packaging line automation (canning, bottling, labeling, case packing), and clean-in-place (CIP) systems that automate the sanitization of tanks, pipes, and processing equipment. Every one of these systems needs automation professionals to design, install, program, and maintain them.
Automation Systems in Modern Breweries and Distilleries
A modern craft brewery with annual production above 15,000 barrels typically runs on a combination of PLCs, HMIs, and SCADA software that control the entire production process. The brewhouse â where grain is mashed, wort is separated, and the liquid is boiled with hops â uses PLC-controlled valves, pumps, and heat exchangers to execute recipes with repeatable precision. Temperature profiles during mashing must follow specific curves (typically 148-156 degrees Fahrenheit for most ale styles) with accuracy within one degree to achieve target sugar extraction. This is classic PID loop control territory, and breweries that automate this process see dramatic improvements in batch-to-batch consistency.
Fermentation management is where automation delivers the highest value. A brewery may have 20 to 100 fermentation vessels, each requiring independent temperature control, pressure monitoring, and timing management over fermentation periods of 5 to 21 days. Automated fermentation systems use temperature sensors, glycol cooling valves, and pressure transducers connected to a central PLC or DCS that executes fermentation profiles defined by the brewer. Modern systems integrate dissolved oxygen sensors, pH monitors, and density measurements (using Coriolis flow meters) to provide real-time fermentation tracking.
Distilleries add another layer of complexity with column still automation, pot still temperature management, and automated cut-point determination. The transition from foreshots to heads, hearts, and tails during distillation has traditionally been a manual skill performed by experienced distillers. Automated systems using inline density measurement, gas chromatography, and temperature profiling can now assist with cut-point decisions, though most distillers retain manual override for final quality determination. Clean-in-place systems are critical in both breweries and distilleries, using automated valve sequencing, chemical dosing, temperature control, and conductivity monitoring to ensure tanks and piping are properly sanitized between batches without manual intervention.
Technical Skills That Breweries and Distilleries Need
Beverage automation combines standard industrial controls with food-safety-specific requirements. PLC programming is the foundation, with Allen-Bradley CompactLogix and Siemens S7-1200/S7-1500 being the most common platforms in mid-sized beverage operations. Larger operations may use Schneider Electric Modicon or Emerson DeltaV DCS systems. HMI development using FactoryTalk View, Ignition by Inductive Automation, or WinCC is essential, as operators interact with the automation system primarily through touchscreen interfaces on the production floor.
Instrumentation skills are particularly important: calibrating RTDs and thermocouples for temperature measurement, differential pressure transmitters for level measurement in tanks, Coriolis and magnetic flow meters for product and water flow measurement, and conductivity sensors for CIP verification. Understanding 4-20mA analog signals, HART protocol, and IO-Link digital communication is standard for beverage instrumentation work.
Food safety regulations add requirements beyond typical industrial automation. FDA 21 CFR Part 117 (Current Good Manufacturing Practices), FSMA (Food Safety Modernization Act), and industry-specific standards like the Brewers Association guidelines require documented process controls, traceability, and sanitary design. Automation professionals in beverage manufacturing need to understand hygienic equipment design (3-A Sanitary Standards), CIP validation, and electronic batch record systems. ISA-88 (batch control standard) is directly applicable to brewing and distilling, which are inherently batch processes with defined recipes, phases, and equipment modules.
Certifications and Training
The ISA Certified Automation Professional (CAP) and Certified Control Systems Technician (CCST) credentials apply directly to beverage automation. Rockwell Automation and Siemens certifications validate PLC programming skills. The more specialized credentials include HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) certification, which demonstrates understanding of food safety principles, and ServSafe certifications from the National Restaurant Association. The Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago and the American Brewers Guild offer brewing technology programs that include process automation coursework. UC Davis's Master Brewers Program covers brewery engineering including automation systems. For distilling, the Artisan Spirit Magazine and American Distilling Institute offer educational resources and conferences where automation vendors exhibit their solutions.
Salary Ranges and Career Progression
Automation salaries in the beverage industry vary significantly by operation size. At craft breweries producing 5,000 to 30,000 barrels annually, an automation-capable brewer or maintenance technician earns $45,000 to $65,000. These smaller operations often combine automation responsibilities with other duties. Mid-sized regional breweries (30,000 to 500,000 barrels) employ dedicated automation technicians earning $55,000 to $80,000 and controls engineers earning $75,000 to $110,000. Large brewery operations (Anheuser-Busch InBev, Molson Coors, Constellation Brands) employ automation engineers at $85,000 to $135,000, with senior controls engineers and automation managers earning $120,000 to $155,000.
Distilleries follow a similar pattern: small craft operations pay $40,000 to $60,000 for combined roles, while large distillers like Brown-Forman (makers of Jack Daniel's), Beam Suntory, Diageo, and Sazerac Company pay $80,000 to $140,000 for dedicated automation engineering positions. System integrators specializing in beverage automation â companies like Barnum Mechanical, ProBrew, Krones, and GEA Group â employ controls engineers at $75,000 to $130,000.
Contract rates for beverage automation specialists typically range from $40 to $75 per hour, with higher rates during peak seasonal production periods and new facility commissioning projects.
Where the Jobs Are
Brewery and distillery automation jobs follow the geographic distribution of the craft beverage industry. Colorado (especially Denver and the Front Range) has the highest concentration of craft breweries per capita. California, particularly San Diego, the Bay Area, and Los Angeles, hosts hundreds of production breweries. Portland, Oregon and the Pacific Northwest are major brewing centers. Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, and North Carolina are rapidly growing craft beer markets. For distilling, Kentucky dominates with over 100 distilleries concentrated along the Bourbon Trail. Tennessee has the Jack Daniel's and George Dickel operations plus growing craft distilleries. New York, Texas, and Colorado have expanding craft spirits industries.
The major beverage equipment vendors â Krones (Germany with US offices in Franklin, Wisconsin), GEA Group, Alfa Laval, SPX FLOW, and ProBrew â also hire automation engineers for equipment manufacturing and customer site commissioning. Integration firms like Barnum Mechanical, Palmer Automated Systems, and Matrix Technologies have beverage automation practices that send engineers to brewery and distillery projects nationwide.
Getting Started
If you have existing PLC, instrumentation, or controls experience from another industry, transitioning to beverage automation is straightforward. The core automation skills transfer directly; the learning curve is in understanding brewing and distilling processes, food safety regulations, and hygienic design principles. A one-week HACCP certification course, combined with reading industry publications like Brewers Journal, Craft Brewing Business, and Artisan Spirit Magazine, provides the domain context you need. Automate America connects automation professionals with breweries, distilleries, and beverage equipment companies seeking controls talent for system design, installation, commissioning, and ongoing maintenance.
