News

Briggs of Burton, Inc. officially opens a new Sales and Engineering office in Louisville, Kentucky further strengthening their position in North America.

The move follows a global rise in Bourbon sales and a demand from global spirit producers in the region looking for Briggs of Burton’s expertise in providing sustainability, energy recovery and water saving solutions to expand distilleries and keep up with demand. The new Louisville Sales and Engineering Office will not only grow their North American presence but also allow the company to develop existing relationships and forge new connections within the Bourbon industry.

Reay Dicks, Vice President of Engineering at Briggs of Burton, said: “We are delighted to continue our growth and expansion of distilling projects across Kentucky. It’s great to build on our reputation and experience in distilled spirits, providing many notable players with distillery design, engineering and equipment supporting their overall expansion plans.”

Over recent years the Bourbon industry has seen a record growth in sales and according to the Kentucky Distillery Association in 2019 the tax assessed value of all barrels aging in Kentucky was $3.8 billion an increase of over $400 million on the previous year.

Briggs of Burton’s expertise in bespoke engineering solutions has meant the company has fostered strong relationships with key global spirit producers looking to expand and adopt sustainable solutions. The expansion into Kentucky – where 95% of America’s Bourbon is produced – is the second North American base for the company which has been providing complete turnkey engineering and equipment systems from their sales and engineering office in Rochester, New York for over 40 years.

Serving some of the biggest blue-chip companies in North America across the Brewing, Distilling, Food and Pharmaceutical industries, the new office will allow Briggs of Burton to continue to support customers with their expansion plans while focusing on building distilleries that place sustainability and carbon neutrality at their heart.

Kevin Leach, Group CCO and Sales Director, who oversees all global sales operations at Briggs of Burton, said: “Kentucky is a key location for the Distilling industry and an important part of our many distilled spirit hubs around the world. We have longstanding connections in North America and are excited about our expansion into the home of Bourbon, Kentucky. Bourbon is a growing market, and our expertise is perfectly aligned to support and serve our customers looking to benefit from more sustainable production methods.”

Bourbon is a type of American whiskey which is a barrel aged, distilled liquor made primarily from corn. Around 95% of all Bourbon is produced in Kentucky with the market continuing to grow.

Briggs of Burton PLC, which has its brand new Global Technical Centre based in Burton-on-Trent – the world’s Brewing capital, was originally formed over 285 years ago specialising in brewing equipment and engineering and is known worldwide for its turnkey brewing and distilling capabilities. Briggs of Burton’s history can be traced back to 1732.

Today the company, which employs over 200 staff across five sites including Rochester, New York, Burton on Trent, Prestonpans, Shanghai and now Louisville, Kentucky provides turnkey process engineering solutions for leading companies across the world covering North America, Europe, Central America, Africa, Australia, Japan, and China.