Eric Demmers and Jamie Emma were sitting in traffic on a hot day in the summer of 2013.

“Jamie looked at the landscaping truck next to us and said, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if we could just pour beer out of the side of that truck?’” Demmers said. “I said, ‘We could engineer and build something like that, sure.’”

The duo — who began working together in the early 2000s at Hoffmann-La Roche in the pharmaceutical industry and had started their own pharma consulting company, Advance Clinical, in 2010 — built a prototype in Demmers’ garage.

Nearly two years later, Demmers and Emma had transformed their passion project into Pourbox, a beverage equipment manufacturer, service and rental company in Morristown.

“This is fun for us,” Emma said. “When we show up, we are always the hit of the party.”

Pourbox rents custom trailers and upscale portable bars to instantly transform any space into cost-effective, ice-cold draft beer gardens.

The best part? Unlike traditional draft systems in bars and restaurants, Pourbox saves nearly 15 percent of a keg from being wasted.

“It’s pretty difficult to pour a bad beer with us,” Demmers said.

The company’s first-to-market, mobile concepts flash-chill unrefrigerated kegs at 35 degrees Fahrenheit.

No lines, no foam — and no electricity needed.

“We used the first trailer at a tailgating event at Giants Stadium in the fall of 2013,” Emma said. “People really wanted it, so we made (additional) investments.”

Pourbox currently rents three trailers and one portable bar ranging from four taps at $400 per day to 16 taps at $900 per day, plus delivery and setup fees.

Each unit costs at least $5,000 to build.

“Because it works on the flash-cool system, Pourbox requires maintenance,” Emma said. “You could rent it from us probably 15 times by the time you got your money back from building it.”

Demmers and Emma both service and set up the equipment onsite and usually return later on for pickup.

“Festivals (and events) usually hire third-party bartending services, but there is another aspect of the business in which people really love to self-pour, especially at backyard parties,” Demmers said.

Weddings and corporate functions have become Pourbox’s biggest customers.

“I thought our season would be March to October, but we’ve done an event every month of the year,” Emma said. “Last year was our first full season in which we did about 30 events. This year, in June alone, we will do nearly 15.”

Both Demmers and Emma currently split their time working other jobs. Demmers is now a commercial real estate broker with NAI James E. Hanson in Hackensack and the owner of Cigar Manor, an e-commerce business that sells cigars and accessories.

Emma currently owns two V’s Barbershop franchises, in Hoboken and Chatham, but is looking to parlay Pourbox into his full-time gig.

“It’s a challenge to get away from the seasonal, weekend business, but this is what I’m looking to do,” Emma said.

The duo have options.

For one thing, Pourbox plans to partner with local breweries to increase distribution.

“Venues are often limited by their number of taps, but they can increase and expand your bar with us,” Demmers said.

The company has already partnered with Cricket Hill Brewery in Fairfield, High Point Brewing Company in Butler, River Horse Brewing Company in Ewing Township and Flying Fish Brewing Company in Somerdale.

Next, the duo plan to fully capitalize on outdoor events and festivals, such as Brew at the Zoo at Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange and Wildwood Beer Fest, during the season to expand their brand and marketing.

“Hunterdon Distributors brought us to the Jerseyfest Food Truck Mash-Up at the Meadowlands,” Demmers said. “They expected to go through eight kegs and ended up going through 16. The line was ongoing and moving. When you build a line up, you lose customers that don’t want to wait.

“We even shut down the Budweiser truck.”

Lastly, if Pourbox can’t beat them it will join them.

“Beer distributors are usually our biggest competition, because they give trailers away for free if you buy a certain amount of beer,” Emma said. “However, they often don’t have enough equipment, so we get last-minute calls because the beer distributor can’t provide their customers with a beer truck.”

By expanding its presence and partnering with various large scale venues, restaurants, bars, distributors, festivals and more, Pourbox had grown organically just through referrals and repeat business.

When it started advertising online a few weeks ago, business increased nearly 30 percent.

“The goal now would be to (hire) someone to assist with everyday tasks, such as taking orders,” Emma said.

Pourbox is also evolving as it expands — Demmers’ and Emma’s goal is to move entirely into renting its upscale portable bars while using the larger trailers for advertising and transport purposes.

“We’ve created this new model to serve a higher-end audience, but also logistically be able to serve more people by delivering more taps,” Emma said. “Putting trailers on a hitch and driving them into places can be challenging. We can mass-produce these bars at a much faster rate with more consistent and customizable designs.”

“We believe these are going to be more receptive from a consumer standpoint,” Demmers said.

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On Twitter: @megfry3