Brewers to move

April 25, 2008
Winnipeg Sun
Written by: Simon Fuller

Beer distributor needs more space

Booth, inside Brewers Distributor Ltd.'s new warehouse on Sony Place says his company has been 'operating over capacity.' (C. Procaylo, Sun Media)

The company that helps put beer in the hands of Manitobans is moving to bigger digs.

Brewers Distributor Ltd., which is responsible for the wholesale distribution of beer and the collection of returnable and recyclable beer containers, has signed a 10-year lease with Gendis Inc. to move from its Saskatchewan Avenue facility to a 193,000-sq.-ft. building at 1370 Sony Pl. in Fort Garry.

"This $1.7-million investment in a larger warehouse will give us greater efficiencies, and help to support the growing beer industry," said company president Garry Clermont.

NEED FOR MORE SPACE

The company -- which is jointly owned by Labatt and Molson Breweries -- employs about 80 people.

It also distributes Big Rock, Sleeman and Great Western for consumers in the four western provinces plus the northern territories.

Barry Booth, director of operations for Manitoba, said the move was necessitated by a need for more space.
"Because of our limitations, and the growing beer industry in Manitoba, we're currently operating over capacity," he said.

These limitations include the outdated manual process of picking ale off a palette. New automated technology will enable a layer picker to yank seven layers of cans and bottles at the same time.

Booth said despite the upgrade in technology, all jobs will be safe and the workforce may be expanded sometime in the future.