How precision fluid control supports temperature and hygiene in Heineken SmartDispense®
Maintaining draught beer quality from keg to tap requires close control of two connected factors: temperature and hygiene. For Heineken’s SmartDispense® system, the engineering challenge was to strengthen low-temperature performance while making daily cleaning fast, repeatable and automated, particularly for its growing range of 0.0% ABV products.
Working closely with Heineken’s engineering team, we developed a customised valve and manifold assembly designed around the operational requirements of hospitality dispense environments. The project focused on material selection, heat generation, hygienic flow paths and maintainability, rather than simply replacing an existing component.
Applying our beverage dispense expertise at system level
Beer and cider dispense systems rely on stable pressure, accurate flow control and hygienic fluid handling to protect taste, carbonation and yield. Reliability is particularly important in high-throughput environments such as pubs, bars and event venues, where an interruption during a busy service period can have an immediate operational impact.
Frequent cleaning cycles also place additional demands on valves, diaphragms, manifolds and other fluid-control components. If material compatibility, cleanability and service access are not considered early in the design process, they can affect reliability, hygiene and beverage quality over the life of the system.
This is why our approach to beverage dispense begins with the application rather than the individual component. We look at how fluid control, materials, temperature, cleaning and maintenance requirements interact across the complete system. That application-led approach is central to our wider beverage dispense expertise.
For SmartDispense®, this meant assessing the valve, solenoid, diaphragm materials, manifold geometry and cleaning sequence together. The objective was not simply to introduce a different valve. It was to optimise the performance of the complete assembly around Heineken’s operating requirements.
Why temperature and hygiene matter in draught dispense
Beer quality depends on more than the brewing process. Once the product enters the dispense system, changes in temperature or ineffective cleaning can influence product condition and the consumer’s experience.
For venue operators, the equipment must also be reliable, straightforward to maintain and suitable for routine cleaning without creating unnecessary disruption. This creates several connected engineering requirements:
Maintain a controlled low product temperature.
Limit unwanted heat close to the fluid path.
Avoid areas in which residual product can collect.
Make cleaning sequences repeatable.
Minimise unnecessary power consumption.
Provide practical access for inspection and servicing.
Addressing these requirements separately can lead to compromises elsewhere in the system. For example, a valve selected only for its flow characteristics may generate unwanted heat through its solenoid or use a diaphragm material that becomes less suitable at lower temperatures. A compact manifold may save space, but it can still be difficult to clean if its internal geometry creates areas where product is retained.
Our engineers therefore considered temperature control and hygiene as connected design requirements.
Selecting diaphragm materials for low-temperature operation
Our solution was based on TruControl MS™ media-separated valve technology. During development, we replaced the original FKM diaphragms with EPDM material to address low-temperature rigidity and reduce the risk of beer leakage within the application.
This highlights an important consideration for beverage equipment designers. Diaphragm and seal materials should be selected for the complete operating environment, not simply for their general compatibility with a particular fluid.
The assessment should consider:
Product and cleaning-media compatibility.
Minimum and maximum operating temperatures.
Flexibility at the required temperature.
Pressure conditions.
Switching frequency.
Expected service life.
Inspection and replacement requirements.
Material behaviour can change with temperature and repeated exposure to cleaning processes. Any material change should therefore be validated under the conditions expected within the intended application.
Reducing heat input with a latching solenoid
The project also addressed the heat generated by a conventional continuously energised solenoid valve.
A traditional solenoid consumes power while it remains energised, producing heat close to the valve and fluid path. In a temperature-sensitive dispense application, that heat can work against the system’s cooling requirements.
To address this, we developed a latching solenoid valve that requires electrical power only when changing state. Once actuated, the valve remains in position without continuing to consume holding power.
In the configuration developed for SmartDispense®, power demand falls from nine watts during actuation to zero watts once the valve is latched in position. This removes the need for continuous coil power while also reducing a local source of heat close to the beer path.
For beverage dispense engineers, this demonstrates why electrical operation should be considered alongside mechanical and fluid performance. The total energy impact will depend on factors such as the number of valves, switching frequency, operating period and wider cooling architecture, but the component’s heat contribution can still be important when maintaining a closely controlled product temperature.
Redesigning the cleaning process
Equally important was the redesign of the cleaning process.
For SmartDispense®, we incorporated a zero dead-volume on/off cleaning valve into a double-wall manifold. The flow-path design prevents beer from remaining trapped within the valve and supports an automated cleaning and flushing cycle from keg to tap.
This improves hygiene, reduces contamination risk and provides greater confidence that every dispense meets Heineken’s quality standards.
Developing the valve and manifold as one assembly
Rather than asking Heineken to adapt SmartDispense® around a standard component, we developed the valve and manifold as a customised assembly.
Our teams worked together to consider:
Low-temperature diaphragm performance.
Heat generated by the solenoid.
Automated valve switching.
Hygienic internal geometry.
Manifold integration.
Inspection and service access.
Developing these elements together enabled us to address the interactions between them. Optimising one component in isolation could otherwise have created a constraint elsewhere in the system.
This reflects how we work with beverage OEMs and system developers more broadly. We begin by understanding the fluid, operating conditions, cleaning regime, space requirements and performance targets. We can then assess how the complete fluid-control architecture should be configured to meet those needs.
Supporting repeatable operation and maintenance
The enhanced SmartDispense® system combines tighter temperature management with automated cleaning. The project delivers several operational benefits:
Improved temperature stability.
Enhanced hygiene performance, particularly for alcohol-free beers and ciders.
Automated valve cleaning with reduced manual intervention.
No continuous solenoid power demand once the valve has changed state.
A robust, serviceable valve assembly designed for ongoing operation.
We also support the maintenance programme for the valve assembly. Valve servicing is typically undertaken every two years, supported by maintenance guidance intended to make servicing efficient and consistent.
By considering maintenance requirements during development, we helped create an assembly that can be inspected and serviced as part of the wider SmartDispense® maintenance programme.
What beverage dispense engineers can learn from the project
The SmartDispense® project highlights five practical principles that apply to other beer, cider and beverage dispense systems.
1. Evaluate temperature at component level
Engineers should consider both product temperature and the heat generated by electrical components close to the fluid path. A small local heat source may matter when the system is designed to maintain a tightly controlled serving temperature.
2. Validate materials under real operating conditions
Compatibility data is an important starting point, but it does not always reflect low-temperature flexibility, repeated switching or exposure to cleaning media. Diaphragms and seals should be validated under representative conditions.
3. Treat cleanability as a flow-path requirement
A cleaning cycle is only as effective as the geometry through which the cleaning fluid travels. Valves, manifolds, joints and connections should be reviewed for cavities or retained-volume areas.
4. Consider automation and servicing together
Automated cleaning should reduce operational complexity without making routine inspection or component replacement more difficult. Service access should be considered during the system-design stage.
5. Optimise the assembly, not just the component
Valve, manifold, control and cooling decisions influence one another. Assessing the complete architecture can reveal improvements that would be missed when components are specified separately.
Working together to protect dispense quality
Our long-standing collaboration with Heineken gave both teams a detailed understanding of the SmartDispense® application and its operating environment. By combining that knowledge with our fluid-control and application-engineering expertise, we were able to address temperature management, cleanability, energy use and serviceability within one integrated assembly.
This helps our customers serve consistently high-quality beer while giving consumers the drinking experience they expect every time.
The Heineken SmartDispense® system, supported by IMI’s valve manifold technology, effectively controls both temperature and hygiene throughout the dispense system. This helps our customers serve consistently high-quality beer while giving consumers the drinking experience they expect every time. Stuart Briant, Senior Technical Manager, Heineken
The project shows that improving beverage dispense performance is not simply a matter of selecting a different valve. It requires an understanding of how materials, solenoid operation, internal flow geometry, cleaning and maintenance affect the complete system.
By starting with the application and working closely with Heineken’s engineering team, we developed a solution designed around the conditions SmartDispense® encounters in everyday operation.
Explore our beverage dispense expertise
Every beverage application presents different requirements for flow control, hygiene, pressure management and system integration.
We work with OEMs and beverage system developers from initial concept and component selection through to validation, production and lifecycle support. Our application-led approach helps customers optimise system performance, reduce development risk and support reliable operation throughout the equipment lifecycle.