Founded in 1998, the Hacklberger Getränke-und-Logistikcenter (Hacklberger Beverages and Logistics Center) (HGL) is a spin-off of the Hacklberger brewery where beer has been brewed since 1618. The company supplies about 1,200 beverage dealers and is one of the largest breweries in Bavaria. HGL bottles several beverages, including 14 different types of beer, 25 types of alcohol-free beer and four types of mineral wter. Over 300,000 hectoliters (7.925 million gallons) leave the production facilities each year; the new bottling plant fills up to 36,000 bottles per hour.
When consumers return bottles, they tend to put a mixture of various bottles into the case. This is difficult to manage when mixed cases arrive at Hacklberger. On arrival, cases are loaded on a conveyor system that brings them into the production area. Then the cases are put onto a dedicated belt where they are automatically identified and moved to the appropriate storage areas. Bottles and cases that are not recognized are arranged into the correct sequence for manual sorting.