Let’s be honest: When you launched your first product, the sanitation “program” probably involved a garden hose, a few spray bottles, and a can‑do attitude—and that’s okay. Early‑stage food and beverage companies live on hustle. Cash is precious, floor space is tight, and nobody wants to drop five or six figures on a stainless‑steel Clean‑in‑Place (CIP) skid when every dollar needs to go toward hitting the next customer order.
Taylor Keaten is the Founder and Principal Engineer at Launch Partners, a Denver-based firm that designs and builds custom automation and process equipment for small and mid-sized F&B manufacturers. With more than 15 years in manufacturing and nuclear-sector engineering, he pairs technical rigor with a pragmatic mindset to help producers scale efficiently and safely.Launch PartnersBut here’s the rub: While young brands scale orders by 10 times, their cleaning routines often grow by…well, just adding more elbow grease. Eventually the hose-and‑hope approach collides with reality—more SKUs, shorter changeovers, allergen segregation, outside audits. That’s when downtime balloons and confidence shrinks. At that point, sanitation isn’t just about beating bacteria: it’s about protecting your reputation, cash flow, and future growth.
This column lays out a practical road map for small and mid‑size manufacturers who need to keep it clean without breaking the bank. We’ll talk Minimum Viable Sanitation (MVS), portable "semi‑CIP" hacks, cultural habits that cost nothing, and trigger points that tell you it’s time to level up. Whether you’re a plant engineer counting valves or a CEO counting margin points, the goal is the same: build a cleaning strategy that scales as fast as your business.
1. Start small—but start smart
Most of us began operations with what we had. Manual sanitation is fine if you treat it seriously. Document your process—even if that process is basic. Write down the order of operations, the chemical concentrations, the rinse temperatures. It might feel silly to record "Fill bucket to line B," but that one sentence turns tribal knowledge into a repeatable standard. You can’t improve what you haven’t defined.
Culture tip #1: Celebrate the clean. When the last shift signs off a spotless line, snap a photo, share it in the group chat, and say thanks. Recognition costs nothing and makes sanitation visible beyond the QA office.
2. Define your Minimum Viable Sanitation (MVS)
Think of MVS the same way software developers think of an MVP—just enough functionality to satisfy early needs and prove the concept. For sanitation, an MVS program should tick three boxes:
Repeatable steps: Detailed SOPs, laminated if possible, posted near the line.
Basic verification: Thermometers, titration strips, ATP swabs—whatever fits the budget and satisfies the quality requirements.
Clear ownership: Someone signs off every clean. No signature, no startup.
That’s it. No pumps, no PLC, no gigantic tanks. You’re building discipline, not buying hardware. The discipline pays back immediately by reducing the mental overhead of, “Did we really rinse that tank long enough?”
Culture tip #2: Ask, don’t assume. Encourage operators to question unclear steps. If the answer is, "That’s just how we do it," rewrite the SOP until it makes sense. Curiosity today prevents violations tomorrow.
3. When growth outpaces the mop bucket
How do you know the manual approach is maxed out? Look for these red flags:
Downtime drift: Changeovers that used to take one hour now steal three.
Documentation dread: Audits feel defensive because your records are thin.
Water and chemical creep: You keep turning up the rinse time “just in case.”
Quality déjà vu: Same microbial misstep pops up every quarter.
If two or more of these sound familiar, congratulations—you’re bigger than your cleaning process. It’s time to spend money. The question is: how much, how fast, and where first?
4. Smart steps before full automation
Budget won’t stretch to a centralized and automated CIP skid yet? No problem. Consider these “semi‑CIP” moves that add structure without a massive CapEx hit.
None of these require a PLC or a mezzanine‑sized tank farm, yet together they create a foundation for full automation later. Think of them as Lego bricks that eventually click into something bigger.
Culture tip #3: Train like you’ll automate. Even with manual tools, run cleaning cycles by the clock, not by “feel.” Operators who respect timers today will understand why and respect sensors tomorrow.
5. Scaling with intention—know your trigger points
A good rule of thumb: Sanitation upgrades should lag one step behind production growth—not three. Stay too far behind and you’ll chase problems. Jump too far ahead and you’ll starve cash flow. Below is a quick reference for common trigger points:
These aren’t hard laws, but they help executives budget and engineers plan. The earlier you pencil in sanitation milestones, the less likely you’ll skip them when money gets tight.
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Taylor Keaten is the Founder and Principal Engineer at Launch Partners, a Denver-based firm that designs and builds custom automation and process equipment for small and mid-sized F&B manufacturers. With more than 15 years in manufacturing and nuclear-sector engineering, he pairs technical rigor with a pragmatic mindset to help producers scale efficiently and safely.Launch Partners
