Common Engineering Fixes That Cut Costs and Boost Sustainability in Food and Beverage factories

The smallest inefficiencies can snowball into significant costs. From chilling systems running at half capacity to water and energy losses you can even see, the hidden drains in your plant may be costing more than you think.

In fact, utilities alone can account for 15–30% of total operating costs in food and beverage manufacturing. With increasing input prices and tightening sustainability regulations — like EPR guidelines, FSSAI’s water usage norms, and even EU carbon reporting standards for exporters — plants that don’t proactively optimize their utilities risk falling behind both financially and compliantly.

The good news? You don’t need major equipment overhauls to make a real impact. Smart, hygiene-focused engineering can deliver leaner operations, and better resource recovery — and that’s exactly where PMG Engineering comes in.

What’s Going Wrong in Most Plants?

Here are recurring issues observed during audits and design reviews across dairy, beverage, and food processing plants:

Oversized chilling systems: Many chilling plants operate at 1.5x to 2.0x their required tonnage, wasting energy with no load modulation or variable frequency drives (VFDs).
Compressed air leaks: Air systems are often poorly maintained, with micro-leaks causing 20–30% loss of generated air. Just one 1mm leak at 6 bar can waste over ₹1.2 lakh a year.
Single-use CIP systems: Many plants discard caustic after a single cycle. Reusing
rinse and caustic through a three-tank system can save chemicals, water, and time.
Hygiene design issues: Pipe dead legs longer than 1.5D violate EHEDG and 3-A standards. These increase cleaning times, hold-up volume, and product loss.
Did You Know? Hygienic layout improvements alone can reduce product hold-up by 15–18% per batch.

What the Best Manufacturers Do Differently

Top-performing food and beverage facilities don’t rely on guesswork — they optimize based on engineering audits and real-world performance metrics. Here are a few proven strategies in action, many drawn from PMG’s own projects:

Recovering thermal energy from pasteurized milk to preheat raw milk can reduce boiler load by 25–30%.
Conducting air audits, adding VFDs, and installing inline dryers has helped large dairies save ₹3–4 lakh/month by reducing compressor run-time.
Automated transitions, conductivity monitoring, and correct flow velocities (>1.5 m/s) have reduced caustic and water use by up to 35%.
Switching from butterfly to mixproof valves allows simultaneous CIP and product flow, eliminating cross-contamination risks and reducing downtime.

These aren’t just design ideas — they’re tangible fixes with measurable results.

What Makes PMG Different?

At PMG, we specialize in process and hygienic engineering for the food and beverage sector. Unlike generic MEP consultants, we bring a deep understanding of actual plant realities — from utility balancing to cleaning validation.

Here’s how we help:

1. Sized Utility Design from Day One

We start with a detailed process load analysis based on actual production patterns — not theoretical assumptions. This ensures all utility systems are neither oversized nor undersized, saving from unnecessary capex while optimizing energy efficiency. We design with only the buffer actually need considering peak hours—ensuring for uninterrupted plant operation.

2. In-House Designing

We don’t rely on what vendors provide. Instead, we develop our own detailed. for every utility system, making sure each line, valve, and loop is placed for maximum performance, hygienic flow, and cleaning efficiency. This approach helps us eliminate dead legs, simplify layouts, and reduce product losses during cleaning or switchovers.

3. Energy and Utility Audits with Expert Engineering

For existing facilities, we conduct energy and utility audits, identifying real gaps and missed opportunities — not just on paper. Every recommendation we make is backed by engineering drawings and redesigned layouts, so you know exactly what’s possible and what’s worth investing in.

4. Working in the interest of the client

We support our client in integrating equipment like heat exchangers, VFDs, valve matrices, and flow meters and others. Since PMG doesn’t manufacture or sell equipment, our guidance is 100% unbiased and in clients best interest. Our only goal is to make sure plant runs better — not to push a product. Our engineering adheres to global standards like EHEDG, BIS, ASHRAE, and USFDA hygienic design norms. And we only work with food and beverage manufacturers — so we speak your language.

Don’t Wait for a Compliance Notice to Act

Efficiency isn’t just about saving today — it’s about building a plant ready for tomorrow’s audits, expansions, and sustainability demands. And it starts with small, smart fixes that add up.

Here’s how you can get started:

1. Conduct an review of your utilities and cleaning systems.

2. Identify high-consumption areas — chilling, compressed air, water, CIP, others.

3. Reach out to PMG to discuss your plant challenges — our expert team of engineers is ready to help you resolve them with practical, industry-specific solutions.

4. Explore what’s possible by various Factory Assessment — and uncover the savings hiding in plain sight.

Busting the Myths

Let’s clear up some common misconceptions:

"If it’s running, it’s fine "

Not true. Most inefficiencies don’t shut down your line — they silently drain lakhs each year.

"New equipment will solve it"

Equipment alone isn’t the answer. True efficiency comes from engineering around your actual process and load patterns.

"We’ll fix it in the next expansion"

Delaying fixes today can increase your future CAPEX and operational footprint. Fix now to build leaner later.

Drop us a message and take the first step toward engineering a leaner, greener, and audit- ready facility.

Reference:

Water for Sustainable Food and Agriculture (FAO)
Air Quality Standards ISO 8573.1 & ISO12500
EHEDG Guideline - Hygienic Design Principles
GEA Customer Case Studies
Sustainable Production Optimization – Alfa Laval
CIP and Sanitation of Process Plants – SPX FLOW
Food Safety Handbook – IFC
Safety and Quality of Water in Food Processing – FAO
ISO 8573-1:2010 – Compressed Air Purity Standards
Hygienic Equipment Design Guide – Goudsmi t Magnetics
The Next Era of Food Production – GEA NEXUS
Sustainable Optimization of Fluid Handling – Alfa Laval