What ABE Equipment does

ABE Equipment, a division of Norland International, designs, manufactures, and assembles turnkey beverage production and packaging equipment from a 140,000 sq. ft., four-facility Innovation Campus in Lincoln, Nebraska. The company serves craft beverage producers across beer, distilled spirits, wine, cold brew coffee, kombucha, cider, seltzer, and craft soda, offering a full equipment stack that includes brewhouses (3 to 60 BBL), microbrewery systems (BrewPilot), distillery equipment (Patriot Craft Still, Pilot Still, Sentinel and Scout continuous stills), fermentation and storage tanks (1 to 300 BBL), canning lines (CraftCan Series, CraftCan Duo, CraftCan Iso, CraftCan Go), filling equipment, keg washers, labelers, and a broad set of auxiliary production and packaging items. Notable technical differentiators include a patented Servo Seamer with real-time seam analysis and patented Torque Monitor, proprietary CO2 micro-burst fill heads, proprietary recipe recall software on CraftCan Duo lines, and Brewhouse Automation Plus, which automates liquor blending, vorlauf/wort grant, sparge control, lautering, whirlpool transfer, knockout, and liquor tank management on new brewhouses.

The company monetizes primarily through custom-quoted hardware sales of engineered-to-order equipment, supplemented by an online parts store (abepartstore.com), field service, and a customer referral program (ABE Rewards). Go-to-market blends direct enterprise field sales with degreed engineers providing layout and one-on-one consulting for the US market, plus dedicated distribution partners covering the UK, Australia/New Zealand, Brazil/Argentina/Chile, and Canada. Customer base skews toward craft breweries (startup through mid-market), with documented sales to operators such as Cosmic Eye Brewing, Crane Brewing, Levity Brewing, Outstate Brewing, Ono Brewing, Burnt City Brewing, Big Top Brewing, Sedona Beer Company, Six Bridges Brewing, Fredonia Brewery, Frost Beer Works, Lake Tribe Brewing, Laughing Sun Brewing, Range Brewing, Rocky Ridge Brewing, and Nashoba Valley Winery, plus international buyers including Cerveceria Artesanal Corcovado in Costa Rica. ABE is privately held under Norland International, has rebranded twice since 2020 to broaden its positioning beyond beer, and employs approximately 135 people in Nebraska.

Name

ABE Equipment

Legal name

ABE Equipment, A Division of Norland International

Website

https://abeequipment.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

ABE Equipment, a division of Norland International, designs and manufactures turnkey beverage production and packaging equipment from Lincoln, Nebraska, serving craft breweries, distilleries, and other craft beverage producers worldwide via direct sales and international distributors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Beverage Production Equipment Manufacturing

NAICS

Food Product Machinery Manufacturing (333241)

SIC

General Industrial Machinery & Equipment (3560)

akta.pro primary industry

Filling & Dosing Machines (Liquid/Powder/Solid) (IMAHAOAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Packaging Machinery Parts, Tooling & Changeover Kits (IMAHAOAO), Bottling Line Maintenance, Automation & Integration Services (AFAFAJAN)

Keywords

• Craft brewing equipment
• Beverage production machinery
• Canning line systems
• Distillery equipment manufacturing
• Fermentation tank fabrication

Headquarters

HQ city

Lincoln

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Beverage Equipment Sales: ABE Equipment designs and manufactures complete turnkey solutions for craft beverage producers including brewhouses, distilling equipment, canning lines, filling machines, cellar tanks, and auxiliary equipment. Equipment is custom-built and priced through quotes.
2. Parts and Service: Online parts store contains hundreds of beverage equipment parts to keep equipment operating efficiently. Service team provides ongoing support and maintenance.
3. Customer Referrals (ABE Rewards): Customers can earn rewards credits by referring friends who purchase equipment. Credits apply toward future equipment, parts, or service needs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ABE Equipment designs, manufactures, and assembles complete turnkey beverage production equipment including brewhouses, distillery stills, canning lines, fermentation and brite tanks, bottle fillers, keg washers, and labeling machines. All equipment is custom-built at their 140,000 sq. ft. facility in Lincoln, Nebraska and sold primarily through direct enterprise sales with engineering consultation, layout services, and ongoing parts and service support.

Product overview

ABE Equipment is a beverage equipment manufacturer offering complete turnkey solutions for craft beer, craft spirits, and other beverage production. The product portfolio centers on brewhouses (Craft Beer Brewhouse, Cold Brew Coffee House, BrewPilot microbrewery equipment), distillery equipment (Sentinel and Scout Continuous Stills, Patriot Craft Still, Mash Houses, Pilot Still systems), fermentation and storage tanks (Fermenters, Brite Tanks, Hot/Cold Liquor Tanks, Mixing Tanks, WatchDog monitors), and packaging lines (CraftCan Series, CraftCan Duo Series, CraftCan Iso Series, CraftCan Go canning lines). Supporting equipment includes filling machines (TruPatriot Filler, Patriot Fill Station, Marksman Shooter Filler, GlassPak), keg cleaning (KegCommander), labeling systems (LabelMax90, LabelMax35, SmartShot15), and auxiliary products (depalletizers, can feed systems, rinsers, can packers, nitro dosers, grain handling, water treatment, CIP systems). All equipment is designed and assembled at their Lincoln, Nebraska headquarters, with a five-year guarantee on stainless steel and jackets for tanks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CraftCan: Beverage canning line series
• BrewPilot
• Patriot Craft Still
• KegCommander
• LabelMax
• TruPatriot
• Patriot Fill Station
• Sentinel
• Scout
• WatchDog
• YellowJacket
• GlassPak
• Marksman

Products and services

• Brewhouses Custom-built brewhouse equipment for craft beer production, available in 3bbl to 60bbl capacities with 2 to 4 vessel configurations, with steam, gas, and indirect electric heating options and full or semi-automatic controls.
• BrewPilot Microbrewery Equipment Compact nano/micro brewing system with 3bbl to 5bbl options, skid-mounted design, steam or indirect electric heat, small footprint and manual operation, ideal for startup microbreweries or test-pilot systems.
• Cold Brew Coffee House Cold brew coffee brewing system with 3bbl to 60bbl options, lasered false bottom, rake/plow system for spent-ground removal, jacketed vessel for heating or cooling, and HMI touchscreen controls.
• Sentinel Continuous Still Fully automated continuous still with up to 20 L/min feed-in rate and 2.6 L/min max output, powered by industrial computer, designed for breweries expanding into distilling.
• Scout Continuous Still Compact continuous still scaled down from the Sentinel, with up to 11 L/min feed-in rate, 1.5 L/min max output, and 14-plate system for smaller operations.
• Patriot Craft Still Full-size craft distillery still available in 125 to 1,000 gallon capacities with electric or steam heating, customizable with whiskey, bourbon, or brandy helmets, available in copper or stainless steel.
• Mash House for Spirits Mash tun for spirit production available in 5bbl to 60bbl options with steam-jacketed or electric heating, featuring stainless steel grist hydrator, dual zone jackets, and automatic temperature controls.
• Pilot Still 50-gallon micro still for small-batch producers with 200L insulated stainless steel kettle, 6-plate copper column, optional spirit safe, and explosion-proof heating elements.
• Pilot Still Skid Turnkey skid-mounted distilling solution with 50-gallon still, spirit safe, and 3x100 gallon fermentation tanks, copper column, dephlegmator, and final condenser.
• Pilot Mash House Skid Skid-mounted 100-gallon mash tun with electric or steam-jacketed heating, integrated flow meter, precision temperature controls, and plate heat exchangers.
• Fermenter Stainless steel fermentation tank available in 1bbl to 300bbl capacities with 30 PSI design pressure, multi-zone glycol jackets, perlick-style sample valves, and 360-degree CIP spray ball.
• Brite Tank Beverage maturation, clarification, carbonation, and storage tank in 1bbl to 300bbl sizes, featuring carbonation stone, level sight tube, and perlick-style sample valve.
• Hot/Cold Liquor Tanks Water storage tanks available in 3bbl to 150bbl capacities with steam, gas, and electric heating options, featuring automatic fill level controls.
• WatchDog Brite Tank Monitor CO2 pressure monitoring and control system for brite tanks that automatically maintains desired tank pressure for consistent carbonation and filling.
• Mixing Tanks Beverage mixing tanks for carbonated and non-carbonated beverages, featuring food-grade 304 stainless steel construction, carbonation stones, and eductor or mechanical agitation systems.
• CraftCan Series Canning Line Beverage canning line with up to 15-35 CPM throughput, patented Servo Seamer with torque monitoring, one-piece fill heads with CO2 micro-burst foam management, and easy can size changeover.
• CraftCan Duo Series Canning Line Dual-lane canning system with up to 45-90 CPM throughput, independently operating lanes for different can sizes or products, proprietary recipe recall software, and rotary can indexing.
• CraftCan Iso Series Canning Line Counter-pressure canning line with up to 16-40 CPM, CO2 and nitrogen pre-purge for oxygen evacuation, isobaric filler for beverages up to 4.0 volumes of CO2.
• CraftCan Go Canning Line Compact counter-pressure or atmospheric filler with up to 10-15 CPM, nitrogen compatible, average DO pickup of 15-25 PPB for atmospheric filling.
• TruPatriot Filler Automatic volumetric piston bottle filler for non-carbonated products, fills 350ml to 2.25L bottles at up to 16 BPM with less than 1% volume accuracy, compatible with corks, crowns, and PCO caps.
• Patriot Fill Station Semi-automatic 2-head bottle filler for non-carbonated products, fills 250ml to 2.25L bottles at up to 8 BPM, customizable with filling and capping stations, built-in filtration.
• Marksman Classic Shooter Filler Precision filling system for 50ml shooter bottles with ±2% fill accuracy, precision peristaltic pump, servo capping, up to 15 BPM, stainless steel construction.
• GlassPak Glass Bottling System High-speed rotary glass bottling system with rinsing, filling, and capping up to 33 or 66 BPM, double pre-evacuation purging for low DO levels, counter-pressure filling process.
• KegCommander Keg Washer Dual-head keg cleaning system that cleans and purges up to 34 kegs per hour with 21 adjustable cleaning steps, HMI touchscreen interface, 304 stainless steel construction, 5-year warranty.
• LabelMax90 Labeling Machine Inline label applicator for up to 90 containers per minute, computerized controls with optical sensors, conveyor-mounted assembly, accommodates nearly all single-use beverage container sizes.
• LabelMax35 Tabletop Labeler Compact tabletop labeling system for up to 35 containers per minute, touchscreen PLC controls, servo motor for precise positioning, built-in photo sensor.
• SmartShot15 Labeler Compact label applicator with date coding capabilities, SD card slot for firmware upgrades, built-in photo sensor, military-grade anodized aluminum frame.
• YellowJacket Depalletizer Automated depalletizer accepting standard pallet sizes, handles full or half height pallets, pre-wired and pre-tested, no air required, easily integrates into select ABE canning lines.
• TailGator Feed Table Semi-automated can feed system with 65 CPM capacity, tilts and vibrates for feeding into TwistRinse, accommodates cans up to 16oz, allows full slip of cans.
• FlipRinse Can rinsing system available in two configurations (3 cans at 18 CPM or 8 cans at 48 CPM), two-second rinse cycles, low water usage, adjustable spray settings.
• AutoPak Can Carrier Applicator Automated can packing system that packs up to 90 cans per minute, easily switches between 4 and 6-pack carriers and 12 to 16oz cans, operates on 120V.
• Inline Weigh Scale Quality control weigh station that measures every seamed can on a calibrated load cell, rejects cans outside customer-defined standards, provides real-time weight feedback.
• Nitro Dosers Dynamic liquid nitrogen dosing system with up to 10 different dose levels, compensates for time difference between filling and seaming, compatible with widget cans.
• Grain Handling Equipment Complete grain handling solutions including grain mills (1,200 to 5,000 lb/hr), hoppers/grist cases in various sizes, and auger systems customized for space and production needs.
• Water Treatment Systems Water treatment equipment including ozone systems, vapor compression distillers, carbon filters, UV treatment, water softeners, RO systems, and storage tanks.
• Portable CIP Cart Clean-in-place mobile system with dual 40-gallon tanks, independent temperature controls, automatic temperature control, mounted on wheeled cart for facility mobility.
• Barrel Cask-It Barrel emptying station with top-mounted rollers for barrel rotation, 136-gallon total volume, stainless steel frame, accommodates various barrel sizes and bung locations.
• TableTop Rinser Compact bottle rinsing system for 375ml to 1.75L bottles, pneumatically operated, rinses four bottles simultaneously at 10 BPM, compatible with Patriot Fill Station.
• Parts & Service Online parts store with hundreds of beverage equipment parts, field service technicians, customer support, and 5-year warranties on select equipment for ABE and Norland customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 90 cans per minute throughput with CraftCan Duo90 canning line
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Vigo LtdcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorVigo Ltd is ABE Equipment's distribution partner in the United Kingdom. They provide local sales, service, and support for ABE equipment customers in the UK market.
• ViniquipcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorViniquip is ABE Equipment's distribution partner in Australia and New Zealand. They handle sales, commissioning, spare parts, and servicing for ABE equipment in the ANZ region.
• McPackminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMcPack is ABE Equipment's distribution partner in Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, providing local sales and support for South American customers.
• ElnovaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorElnova is ABE Equipment's distribution partner in Canada, providing local sales and support for Canadian beverage producers.
• SimpleLabminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerABE/Norland has partnered with SimpleLab to provide water testing services for beverage producers. SimpleLab curates a selection of water testing kits including bromide and Bromate test kits for spring and well water sources.
• Norland InternationalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorland International is ABE Equipment's parent company. For nearly 30 years, Norland International has established a reputation as a leading supplier of turnkey beverage equipment, components, and support services worldwide. Norland's 30+ years of experience in the water equipment industry paved the way for ABE's success.
• Norland PureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorland Pure is a subsidiary of Norland International and part of the ABE/Norland family of brands. Located in Lincoln, Nebraska, they provide customers with bottled water and operate from the same campus as ABE.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• GEA Group: GEA Group is a large global industrial equipment manufacturer supplying separators, homogenizers, and processing equipment to beverage and food industries. A broad incumbent competitor offering overlapping capabilities to ABE in beverage processing equipment at industrial scale.
• Krones AG: Krones AG is a global market leader in beverage packaging and processing machinery with comprehensive brewing, bottling, and canning solutions. A broad incumbent competitor to ABE with much greater scale, broader product portfolio, and global service network.

Direct peers

• Vendome Copper & Brass Works: Vendome Copper & Brass Works manufactures copper and stainless steel distillery equipment including stills, mash tuns, and fermenters. Directly comparable to ABE's craft distillery equipment line including Patriot Craft Still and Sentinel Continuous Still.
• Portland Kettle Works: Portland Kettle Works designs and manufactures custom brewhouses and brewery equipment for craft breweries in sizes from 1BBL to 30BBL. Closely comparable to ABE as a US-based craft brewery equipment manufacturer serving startup to mid-market brewers.
• Craftmaster Brewing Solutions: Craftmaster Brewing designs and manufactures custom brewhouses and brewing systems for craft breweries. Directly comparable to ABE's brewhouse manufacturing business serving similar craft beer customers.
• Pro Brewing Solutions: Pro Brewing Solutions provides turnkey craft brewing equipment and brewery design services. Directly comparable to ABE as a competitor offering complete brewery solutions to craft beer startups and established brewers.
• Premier Stainless Systems: Premier Stainless manufactures stainless steel pressure vessels, fermenters, brite tanks, and custom tanks for the brewing and beverage industries. Directly comparable to ABE's cellar tanks and fabrication capabilities.
• Spike Brewing Equipment: Spike Brewing designs and manufactures homebrew and small commercial brewing equipment including brewhouses, fermenters, and canning solutions. Comparable to ABE in the craft brewing equipment space though focused more heavily on the prosumer/pilot end.
• Stout Tanks and Kettles: Stout Tanks and Kettles manufactures stainless steel brewing equipment including mash tuns, boil kettles, and fermenters for craft breweries. Directly comparable to ABE's brewhouse and tank fabrication business.
• DME Brewing Services: DME Brewing Services is a craft brewery equipment supplier offering brewhouses, cellar tanks, kegging, and packaging equipment. Directly comparable to ABE Equipment as a North American craft brewery turnkey equipment provider serving similar craft beer customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ABE Equipment