Top 10 Must-Have Pieces of Equipment for a Commercial Brewery (With Diagrams)

Meta Description: Launching a commercial brewery? Discover the 10 essential equipment pieces you need, explained with simple diagrams. Build your foundation for success.

Building your brewery equipment list can be overwhelming. To simplify, here are the 10 non-negotiable pieces of equipment every commercial craft brewery needs, visualized to show how they work together.

1. The Brewhouse: The Heart of the Operation

This is where wort is made. A 2-vessel or 3-vessel system typically includes:

Mash/Lauter Tun: Grains are mixed with hot water to convert starches to sugars. The false bottom separates sweet wort from spent grains.

Diagram Point: Show grain bed and wort filtration path.

Brew Kettle: The wort is boiled, hops are added, and sterilization occurs.

Whirlpool (or combined with kettle): Separates hop particles and trub (coagulated proteins) from the hot wort.

2. Fermentation Tanks

Where yeast works its magic, converting sugars to alcohol and CO2. Key features: conical bottom for yeast collection, cooling jackets for precise temperature control, and pressure-rated capabilities for certain styles.

3. Brite Beer Tanks (BBTs)

The final holding tank where beer is carbonated, clarified, and prepared for packaging. They look similar to fermenters but are designed for serving clarity and pressure.

4. Hot Liquor Tank (HLT)

Heats and stores the hot water needed for mashing and cleaning. Improves efficiency and brew day timing.

5. Cold Liquor Tank (CLT)

Stores cold water used to cool the wort after boiling via the...

6. Heat Exchanger (or Wort Chiller)

Rapidly cools boiling wort down to yeast-pitching temperature (e.g., 68°F/20°C) using cold water from the CLT. This is critical for preventing contamination and achieving proper fermentation.

7. Glycol Chiller & Glycol System

The “refrigerator” for your brewery. It pumps chilled glycol through the jackets of your fermentation tanks and brite tanks to maintain exact temperatures.

8. Centrifugal Pumps & Piping

Food-grade pumps move liquids (wort, water, beer) throughout the brewery. Sanitary piping (often stainless steel Tri-Clamp) connects everything.

9. CIP (Clean-In-Place) System

The most important system for quality control. It uses tanks, pumps, and spray balls to automatically clean and sanitize tanks and pipes without disassembly.

10. Control Panel & Automation

From simple manual valves to full PLC automation panels, controls manage temperatures, pump sequencing, and timing, ensuring consistency and repeatability.

Overall Process Flow Diagram: Illustrate the journey from grain to packaged beer, linking all 10 components.

Need a Customized Equipment List?

This top 10 list is your foundation. Your specific needs (e.g., adding a canning line) will vary.

Download our detailed, interactive equipment checklist to build your perfect system and get a quote tailored to your brewery plan.