FLAG DAY
Quality the keyword
at Murphy's Ireland
General Manager F. van der Minne, in a speech he made
some time ago, described the dedication to quality as one of
the pillars on which the success of Murphy's Brewery in
Ireland is built. We talked about quality and quality control
with Colin Johns, whose work as a brewer means he is closely
involved in making a good product.
Purity
Expensive operation
Cameroun's International Brasserie (in which Heineken
has a 34% interest) currently has the Amstel Award on
display in a prominent place in the brewery. The brewery's
management received this distinction in Douala at the end of
June in recognition of the great efforts by the entire personnel
of International Brasserie in helping to make Amstel beer an
outstanding success in Cameroun in a short space of time.
Contribution
Third place
PAGE 2 HEINEKEN INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE NR. 15
Building work at Heineken's
head office in Amsterdam is
progressing steadily. Two months
ago the flag was raised to celebrate
completion of the topmost point of
the building. Executive Board
members Mr. Coebergh and Mr.
Oostra, together with architect
H.M. Fennis, hoisted the Heine-
ken flag during typical Dutch
weather conditions (see photo).
Afterwards construction workers
received the traditional gift of
'topping-out beer' for reaching the
highest point. The new wing of the
building should be ready by about
the end of the year. After that the
head office premises, meanwhile in
use for almost twenty years, will be
thoroughly renovated. All the
building work should be finished by
the summer of 1989.
"Quality control obviously starts
even before the brewing process -
with the choice of our raw materials
suppliers. Our malt comes from
Ireland and the hop extract is
imported from Kent in England.
When a shipment of malt arrives
the laboratory evaluates the malt's
quality. That quality inspection is
very important. A poorer quality
malt hampers the brewing process
and may result in a poor finished
product. The malt quality also
influences the quantity of beer you
can brew with it", explains Mr.
Johns.
The laboratory also tests the
water as it enters the brewery and
after it has been processed to make
it suitable for use as brew water.
This examination is aimed at check
ing both the microbiological and
the mineral composition. Another
aspect checked by the laboratory is
the purity of the yeast for both
Heineken lager and Murphy's
Stout.
Samples for testing in the labora
tory are also taken during fermen
tation and storage. Special tests are
used to make sure that the unripe
beer has not perhaps become
infected or contaminated.
The laboratory staff may have
completed their work after the
inspection at the end of the filling
line, but quality assurance does not
stop at the brewery gate. At the
point of consumption - in Ireland
this is in the pub in 94% of all cases
- Heineken lager and Murphy's
Stout must still be in prime condi
tion. Good dispensing installations
can help a great deal to ensure
quality. Michael Foley, Murphy's
Commercial Manager: "We're
working hard to improve our
technical support. It's an expensive
operation; it costs us two and a half
million pounds a year. But it is
essential to guarantee the good
quality of our products."
The intention is that every publi
can who serves Heineken lager and
or Murphy's Stout can in future
count on his dispensing equipment
being cleaned once a month. The
entire operation is scheduled to
start at the end of next year.
First Amstel Award for
International Brasserie
The Amstel
Award proves that International Brasserie is moving with its times.
To qualify for the Amstel Award
Heineken's affiliated breweries
have to meet two criteria: achieving
an above-average sales growth, and
brewing a product of high quality.
Thanks to the excellent quality
of the Amstel beer brewed in
Cameroun, a well organised
distribution system and a first-rate
sales department, International
Brasserie's sales of Amstel were
lifted to the impressive volume of
100,000 hectolitres last year.
The Amstel Award was
presented by Mr. J.E.M. Bruning,
Regional Marketing Manager of
Heineken, to company chairman
V. Fotso during a ceremony
attended by some forty members of
the personnel. Mr. Fotso, acknowl
edging the contribution that the
Mr. J.E.M. Bruning, Heineken
Regional Marketing Manager,
hands over the award to Mr.
V. Fotso.
brewery's management team had
made towards Amstel's success,
immediately handed over the
present - still unwrapped - to Mr.
A. Fontana, General Manager of
International Brasserie.
Mr. M. Lohman, Heineken's
Area Marketing Manager, explains
why the award went to Interna
tional Brasserie. "Never before has
a new brewery group (the brewery
has only existed for three years,
ed.) sold so much Amstel beer in
such a short time. There are two
reasons for the success of Amstel.
First, International Brasserie
makes sure that the product has a
consistently high quality. Second,
Amstel's international image has a
strong appeal to consumers in
Cameroun."
How important International
Brasserie's activities have
meanwhile become for the Amstel
brand is reflected in the current
rankings of Amstel's best-selling
The management team of
Cameroun's International Brasserie
with the Amstel Award. Left to
right: Messrs. A. Fontana, General
Manager, R. Youmbi, Financial
Manager, J. P. Servy, Commercial
Manager. Missing from this photo is
L. Jolie, a Heineken employee and
Technical Manager, who was on
leave in Europe at the time.
Mr. V. Fotso, Chairman of the
Board of Directors of International
Brasserie.
countries outside the Netherlands.
After Greece and the Netherlands
Antilles, Cameroun now occupies a
well-deserved third place.
The brewery in Douala is now
operating at top capacity, thanks to
successful sales volumes of both
Amstel and Mützig beer. The sharp
climb in sales means that Interna
tional Brasserie will have to
expand. In the near future Heine
ken Technisch Beheer will be
supervising the extension of the
brewhouse and the storage cellars
and also the installation of an extra
bottling line. This will guarantee
that by mid-1989 the capacity will
be more than ample to meet the
tremendous demand.
International Brasserie is
obviously moving with its times.
And the time element was clearly
reflected in the form of the Amstel
Award. The prize consisted of a
pedestal clock.