It may market itself as “America’s Oldest Brewery,” but the D.G. Yuengling and Son, Inc. brewery in Pottsville, Pennsylvania has been on the leading edge of manufacturing innovation for decades.

Imagine a 2.4-ton robotic arm wielding a six-foot-seven (2-m) circular sawblade with a 12-foot (3.7-m) reach, slung onto a truck-mounted hooklift system for easy transport. It's as terrifying as it is ...