In microbrewery engineering and construction, there are numerous areas where legal issues come into play from concept to completion. This article will attempt to outline some of the legal issues one must consider as one proceeds through the entire engineering and construction process of a new 15 barrel (bbl) microbrewery. The process will be divided into two separate sections: engineering design and construction.
Let’s start the engineering design process with the owner’s concept: “I want you to design a 15 bbl microbrewery for me.” As a crafty engineer, you know you need a written contract. This written contract must clearly contain several elements to be valid. These elements are: competent parties, agreement (offer and acceptance), consideration, legal object and form. The competent parties would be the owner and you (or your engineering company). The agreement would be your offer to design and design the microbrewery, and your acceptance would indicate an agreement. The consideration would be that you receive a fee (for instructional purposes, let’s say you charge a flat fee to design construction plans that will be accepted by the building permitting office. The owner’s consideration would be those completed construction plans that are accepted by the permit office, so it is ready to use for construction. The contract must have a legal purpose, in this case, the design and engineering of a microbrewery. The form, of course, would be the written form that describes all the Previous Items Now that the basics of the contract are known, you should now work with the owner to get some answers to help you design this new microbrewery.
Since the microbrewery will be a 15 bbl system, you may need details such as:
What is the expected maximum annual production capacity?
What type of beer will be produced (ale, lager, stout)?
How will the beer be packaged (bottles, cans, kegs)?
You ask these questions because they are necessary to determine the size of the installation, as well as what special elements need to be designed. For example, the owner says he wants to be able to brew and store three beers a week. Knowing this, you now have to calculate enough space and equipment to handle a maximum annual capacity of 2,250 barrels at 50 weeks of brewing per year.
Calculation of annual production
System size (brewhouse size) x Number of cooks per week x 50 weeks per year = Annual production 15 barrels (bbls) x 3 cooks / week x 50 weeks / year = 2250 bbls / year
The owner also says that he wants to brew both ales and lagers: 50% ale production and 50% lager production. You also know that each brew type has a different brewing cycle and therefore requires a different number of fermenters per beer type.
Calculation of the number of fermenters
Annual production capacity of 2,250 bbl (50% Ale, 50% Lager)
14-day ales / 28-day lagers with complete fermentation in fermenters Ales – 25 cycles / fermenter / year (50 weeks prep / 2 weeks fermentation) Lagers – 12.5 cycles / fermenter / year (50 weeks prep / 4 fermentation weeks)
Ale: 1125 bbls / year / (15 bbls x 25 cycles / year) = 3 Lagers Fermenters: 1125 bbls / year / (15 bbls x 12.5 cycles / year) = 6 Fermenters Total: 9 – (15 bbl) Fermenters for produce 1125 bbls ales and 1125 bbls lagers
This information will affect the dimensions of the microbrewery. You know that beers ideally ferment between 65 and 75 degrees F, but you also know that beers ferment below 65 degrees and need to age longer in beer tanks, so you should add not just a “hot room” for the beers, but also a “cold room”. “For beer tanks and dispenser tanks. The owner says he wants to dispense the beers in ½ bbl kegs and 12 oz bottles. He also stipulates that he needs enough space to store a month’s worth of each type of container. So Based on this requirement, you must calculate the space required for the bottling and keg machinery, as well as the storage space for a monthly supply of ½ bbl kegs and 12 oz bottles.
Of course, you will need to find out the other specific requirements of the microbrewery, such as needs for water, drainage, floor finishing, electricity, ceiling heights, ventilation areas, loading and unloading, etc. Slowly but surely, the image of what needs to be designed is being formed. As an engineer, you will need to ask a lot of questions and get answers to those questions so that you can clearly outline the specifications of what needs to be built into the contract. Additionally, by getting these specifications in writing, you will further remove any ambiguity that may exist, that could be used to violate the contract, or that could be used against you if you have to go to court to resolve a contract dispute.
After several weeks of hard work, you finish the project, submit the plans for approval, and they are approved. You present the approved plans to the owner in consideration for their services and your fee is paid in return.
Having been satisfied with your design and engineering services, the owner now asks you to be the general contractor for the construction phase of the project. It asks you to provide an offer as soon as possible. You call your suppliers to get prices, availability, delivery time, etc. Receive offers from subcontractors for various trades (plumbing, electrical, HVAC, flooring, etc.). Choose the subcontractors that you think are best suited to your needs.
Additionally, it has done its due diligence making sure that all of its subcontractors are licensed, that they have their own forms of liability insurance, and that their workers are covered in the event of injury. As a general contractor, you, of course, must also be licensed, have liability insurance, bonds, workers’ compensation insurance, etc. All of these are tools that help protect you legally in the event of liability issues or injuries arising during the construction of the microbrewery.
When preparing the contract for the offer (and the work), you make sure that the specifications contain all the critical elements such as: general provisions, the work schedule, change order procedures, drawings, receipt and storage of materials, warranty labor, materials warranty, payment methods, link release procedure, etc.
Once you’ve collected your information, submit your offer and the owner agrees. Of course, there can be many different contracts involved here: the contract between the owner and you (the general contractor); the contracts between you and the subcontractors; and the contracts between you and your suppliers.
Finally, the first construction supplies arrive, construction begins, and in several months, you and your team have built a new, top-of-the-line microbrewery, adding value to the community, the nation’s economy, as well as bringing in a little money. . in your pocket.
Now, let’s review. Along the way, there were several areas where you might have encountered potential legal trouble. In the position of engineer, he made sure that the contract contained all the elements necessary for it to be valid: competent parties, agreement (offer and acceptance), consideration, legal object and form. Also, based on the owner’s information, you made very detailed specifications of the microbrewery design and put it in writing. This helped avoid any ambiguity between what the owner wanted and what you thought the owner wanted; In addition, you put the design specifications in writing.
In the role of general contractor, you had to deal with potential contract-related legal issues between you and the owner, you and your subcontractors, as well as between you and your suppliers. Possibly you had to face employment issues, liability issues, injuries, workers’ compensation insurance claims, improper deliveries of construction supplies, theft or damage of materials or equipment in the workplace, or perhaps even attractive nuisance issues. Regardless of what you have encountered as an engineer and as a general contractor, you know that you are armed with the knowledge to overcome any legal problems you may encounter. It’s time for a beer!