NBL Mbarara Brewery

Setting design precedents with Uganda’s most advanced brewery.

Client

Nile Breweries Limited (NBL), a subsidiary of SABMiller (now part of AB InBev)

Project date

2012

Nile Breweries Limited launched a project in 2012 to construct a new greenfields brewery at Mbarara in south-western Uganda to international quality standards. The brewery aimed to be cost-effective while optimising cost per hectolitre. Situated on the banks of the Rwizi River, the design needed to be visually appealing and maintain low industrial emissions, establishing a benchmark for future development in the area.

The opportunity

The client required a brewery that combined operational efficiency with environmental sensitivity. The facility needed to optimise product flow, accommodate future expansion, and demonstrate sustainable design principles while ensuring tight control over distribution and raw material deliveries.

What we did

Zutari was appointed as the civil and structural consultant. The design team collaborated closely with Krones AG, the process designers. From project inception, an integrated site layout was developed, centred around a common axis linking all principal process areas. Service corridors and pipe spines provided access for future expansion.

A central mezzanine level was incorporated to house control rooms, electrical distribution, and offices, providing immediate pedestrian access to all key process areas. This mezzanine extends along the primary axis to the packaging hall, allowing an additional hall to be added with minimal disruption to operations. A single site access point facilitated controlled distribution and bulk raw material delivery via a weighbridge.

Zutari provided full engineering, procurement, and construction management (EPCM) services, including direct input into the treatment system design. The common axis concept has become a model for other breweries. Building heights were minimised, and the continuous, uniform structure reduced the need for ancillary buildings.
The integrated site layout with central mezzanine provides efficient access to all key process areas and allows for future expansion with minimal operational interference.

The outcome

On completion, the Mbarara Brewery became the most advanced brewery in Uganda. Its clean, impressive structure set new standards in both design and operational efficiency. The project received the 2013 CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Award for Best International Project.

NBL Mbarara Brewery stands as a benchmark for modern brewery design in Uganda, combining visual appeal, operational efficiency, and sustainable practices.

The common axis concept has since been adopted as a model for other breweries, demonstrating the power of integrated design.

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