Testimonials Orange Business helps an Antwerp brewery in need
The Antwerpse Brouw Compagnie is an independent local brewery based in the Noorderpershuis, in Antwerp's old port area. Johan Van Dyck, a former board member at Duvel Moortgat, founded the brewery in 2011 to revive Seef, a centuries-old Antwerp beer that hadn’t been brewed for almost 100 years. The brewery has since expanded its range with several other beers.
No brewery without internet
"To get beer into the bottle, you need malt, yeast, hops and water, but telephony and especially internet are just as important for our daily operations," Johan Van Dyck explains. "Our orders come in through the internet, and our accounting software, production planning, administration and other systems all run through the cloud. The system that traces ingredients across the entire chain, from purchase to end customer, for food safety, also operates online. On top of that, we can monitor and control our brewing hall remotely, and the payment terminals, till system, ordering system and time registration in our hospitality area all depend on an internet connection. On busy days, several hundred people come to eat and drink in our taproom. In short, a stable internet connection is essential."
That was working well, until the company received a letter from its internet provider late last year, warning that its connection would likely be cut off. The copper network was set to be decommissioned and, according to the provider, there was no technical solution for a fibre connection. The brewery is the only internet customer in this historic part of the port, and laying fibre would apparently be too costly. Johan Van Dyck went looking for a provider that could offer a solution, and that’s how he came into contact with Orange Business.
The account manager asked what we needed, then optimised the solution.
Optimal service
According to Van Dyck, Orange Business made a difference from the very first conversation. "The Orange Business account manager first asked exactly what we needed. Based on that, he proposed a solution that fit our situation perfectly." Following those talks, the company switched to Orange Business for fixed and mobile internet and telephony.
The brewery's building is large, with separate blocks for production and offices. The previous provider had set up two separate internet connections. Orange Business proposed a more cost-efficient solution, says Johan Van Dyck: "The internet connection comes into one building. A wireless point-to-point link then carries it to the other building. That way, a single connection is enough."
For us, internet just has to work. I don't want to worry about it.
Always connected
"For us, internet just has to work," he says. "I don't want to worry about it, just like I never wonder whether water will come out of the tap." The brewery therefore extended its internet solution at Orange Business with Internet Continuity. With this solution, the modem automatically switches to a 5G connection in seconds if the fixed internet line fails.
"In Antwerp, roadworks often damage a cable, leaving a whole neighbourhood without internet," Johan Van Dyck explains. "That happened to us recently. Thanks to the Orange Business solution, we didn't notice a thing. The connection is fast and reliable, so we don't need to give it a second thought."
Having everything bundled in one package makes things much simpler for us.
No worries
Johan Van Dyck also appreciates the way a major player like Orange Business can be committed to a smaller business like his. "In an extremely busy period, we were faced with a major problem that should never have been a problem at all: having an internet connection. Orange Business quickly got us out of trouble. And having all our telecom services bundled in one package makes our administration a lot simpler too."
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The Antwerpse Brouw Compagnie is an independent local brewery reviving Antwerp beers, blending traditional brewing methods with new technology. It runs on 100% green electricity and uses recycled crates and reusable bottles. The taproom is open from Wednesday to Sunday.
