The Funniest Moment in My Career
The year is 2002 – same that our brewery became a member of Carlsberg Group. That day before, the owner was a very respected Turkish businessman, working close together with decades experienced brewery manager.
Our investment plans were very ambitious – within a winter to make all installations in Brewhouse and Fermentation cellar in a way to move technology from 20-th to 21-st century. Brewhouse was fully automated, Fermentation went up from underground to zero-plus level with CCTs. But these are beer industry details.
Work was hard. Late evening staying, weekends at work, bank holidays – everyone who has been in project with heavy construction activities knows what I am talking about. Time pressure was dramatic, very often we had to improvise to an artist extend in a way to balance local, construction companies and executive company schedules and interests. Winter was cold, the site was windy, some German specialist could not resist the gravity of the cheap Bulgarian alcohol, but anyway at spring we managed to start all the equipment.
First beer production trials, good results, fast emptying the tanks (I liked a lot) and finally entire facility was ready to start.
And started well.
Than our CEO – the guy with decades experience – decided to fulfill State Procedure for Buildings and Equipment Legalization. Task was in the field of our Construction specialist – a lady with also decades of experience. All of us thought that this is the last project step and we were very happy.
Two days later lady came on a meeting with after-funeral face. Big problem – the brewery and fermentation cellar we renovated, have not had legalization document issued 20 years back, after their opening. Some communist leader at that time was on a hurry for hunt, they made Opening day earlier and no Government office dared to ask for Legalization papers further. And so, to the present day.
- But where is the problem? – CEO asked.
- Where we make renovations, we need old documentation, in a way to issue a new one.
- But we don’t have an old one…
- Yes, we don’t have.
- And what we will do?
- Well – lady said – first we will legalize old facility…
- Which we destroyed…
- And then we will issue new documents.
CEO was in big hesitate:
- And how we will pass legal inspection on something we already destroyed?
- Well, … I spoke with specialists and we agreed to hide all computes, just as old factory. Thus, we could pass inspection.
In non-professional perception all new technology is old one plus computers. In fact, truth is far away. But if makes sense to do so in a way to pass a formality, we were OK.
Here the fun started.
During working Brewhouse and Fermentation we put all PCs in two operator’s rooms under the tables. To explain presence of two strange looking rooms, we turned them into a dressing room of construction workers. Some of you immediately imagine the situation – dirty clothes, bottles of beer, newspapers for table covering, playing cards and a lot of other detailed chaos elements. Rooms became awful.
Main Brewery manager was not informed…
This was very nice lady in the peak of her career. She was very proud in her own professional environment of specialists from our and other breweries with possibility to have cutting edge technology in her hands. The look of entire factory was turned from dark-slightly-smelling into a new and fresh place to be.
When she came to inspect the brew process, I saw wide open frustrated eyes and all she managed to say was
- What is going on here? – the movie tape of her live just was on Reverse.
Finally, I needed a lot of time to calm her down, slightly loosing situation when I said that Fermentation is the same.
Anyway, inspection passed well. Inspectors came again next days to inspect one-night-grown palace – like in the fairytales.
All team that days, later moved ahead in many careers and lifepaths. It was good days!
Our investment plans were very ambitious – within a winter to make all installations in Brewhouse and Fermentation cellar in a way to move technology from 20-th to 21-st century. Brewhouse was fully automated, Fermentation went up from underground to zero-plus level with CCTs. But these are beer industry details.
Work was hard. Late evening staying, weekends at work, bank holidays – everyone who has been in project with heavy construction activities knows what I am talking about. Time pressure was dramatic, very often we had to improvise to an artist extend in a way to balance local, construction companies and executive company schedules and interests. Winter was cold, the site was windy, some German specialist could not resist the gravity of the cheap Bulgarian alcohol, but anyway at spring we managed to start all the equipment.
First beer production trials, good results, fast emptying the tanks (I liked a lot) and finally entire facility was ready to start.
And started well.
Than our CEO – the guy with decades experience – decided to fulfill State Procedure for Buildings and Equipment Legalization. Task was in the field of our Construction specialist – a lady with also decades of experience. All of us thought that this is the last project step and we were very happy.
Two days later lady came on a meeting with after-funeral face. Big problem – the brewery and fermentation cellar we renovated, have not had legalization document issued 20 years back, after their opening. Some communist leader at that time was on a hurry for hunt, they made Opening day earlier and no Government office dared to ask for Legalization papers further. And so, to the present day.
- But where is the problem? – CEO asked.
- Where we make renovations, we need old documentation, in a way to issue a new one.
- But we don’t have an old one…
- Yes, we don’t have.
- And what we will do?
- Well – lady said – first we will legalize old facility…
- Which we destroyed…
- And then we will issue new documents.
CEO was in big hesitate:
- And how we will pass legal inspection on something we already destroyed?
- Well, … I spoke with specialists and we agreed to hide all computes, just as old factory. Thus, we could pass inspection.
In non-professional perception all new technology is old one plus computers. In fact, truth is far away. But if makes sense to do so in a way to pass a formality, we were OK.
Here the fun started.
During working Brewhouse and Fermentation we put all PCs in two operator’s rooms under the tables. To explain presence of two strange looking rooms, we turned them into a dressing room of construction workers. Some of you immediately imagine the situation – dirty clothes, bottles of beer, newspapers for table covering, playing cards and a lot of other detailed chaos elements. Rooms became awful.
Main Brewery manager was not informed…
This was very nice lady in the peak of her career. She was very proud in her own professional environment of specialists from our and other breweries with possibility to have cutting edge technology in her hands. The look of entire factory was turned from dark-slightly-smelling into a new and fresh place to be.
When she came to inspect the brew process, I saw wide open frustrated eyes and all she managed to say was
- What is going on here? – the movie tape of her live just was on Reverse.
Finally, I needed a lot of time to calm her down, slightly loosing situation when I said that Fermentation is the same.
Anyway, inspection passed well. Inspectors came again next days to inspect one-night-grown palace – like in the fairytales.
All team that days, later moved ahead in many careers and lifepaths. It was good days!
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