How to Choose the Right Modular Cold Room for Your Business

What Are Modular Cold Rooms?

As the focus on food safety and food wastage is increasing, there is a growing need for small to medium-sized cold rooms. These cold rooms are usually built on-site with a high level of customisation and can meet small to medium cold storage requirements. 

These cold rooms offer affordable and energy-efficient refrigeration solutions that are designed to preserve large quantities of chilled or frozen products for prolonged shelf life, without any deterioration in quality. 

Before You Get Started…

Before we go into the specifics of the cold room, you should consider the following points about your supplier or manufacturer. 

• Does the manufacturer have a small or large manufacturing set-up? This can impact the cost as well as stock availability. Usually, large-scale manufacturing can bring down costs and also ensure better stock levels, resulting in faster deliveries. 
• Does your manufacturer deal in only one type of cold storage or a wide range of products? This can help you analyse different products and technical specifications based on your requirements. 
• Does your manufacturer carry out an on-site survey and on-site installation?  

Choosing the Best Modular Cold Room for Your Business

Businesses usually have concerns regarding cost, maintenance, energy efficiency, and temperature control capability when choosing a modular cold room. Moreover, storage capacity, dimensions, aesthetics, and other associated equipment are other factors that can be considered. 

Let us discuss this in detail. 

1. Purpose of the modular cold storage 

The first step is identifying the need to buy a modular cold room. Do you need it for storing perishable food items, laboratory requirements, pharmaceutical products, or others? The purpose will help you determine the technical specifications of the cold room. 

For instance, some cold rooms that are used for storing seafood, horticultural products, farm produce, etc. can also be used for safely keeping operational equipment that generates heat which can have an impact on the product lifespan and functioning. Whereas, cold rooms used in the chemical industry, oil and gas industry, etc. need to be low-maintenance, durable, and easy to clean. 

2. Temperature range 

It is important to know that different types of goods or products require specific temperature conditions for preservation and storage. Usually, the temperature in cold storage may vary from +20℃  to -15℃  and relative humidity may vary from 90% to 98%.  

For instance, apples require a temperature range of 1℃ to 4℃ whereas bananas need optimum temperatures of 13℃-16℃ for prolonged storage. Moreover, frozen foods such as frozen meat, seafood, etc. need to be maintained at -18℃. For vaccines, depending on the type, the temperature range could be +2℃ to +8℃ or even -15℃. 

3.Refrigeration system 

Usually, the refrigeration system of a cold room comprises an evaporator that withdraws heat from the cold room and a condenser that discharges or dissipates the hot air. 

Rinac’s modular cold rooms are equipped with refrigeration systems and compatible evaporators that help maintain cold room temperatures at +4℃ and -18℃. Plus, they are suitable for 35℃ to 45℃ ambient temperature and equipped with 

• Air-cooled condenser unit with reciprocating compressor and R407C/ R404A refrigerant
• Built-in pressure safety switches and control valves
• Fully loaded electrical control panel with microprocessor-based temperature controller
• Freezer evaporators with sleek casing and electric defrost

4. Energy efficiency 

The energy efficiency of a cold room is dependent on many factors including the compressor, evaporator and condenser fan motors, the type of refrigerant used, insulation used in the walls, doors, and flooring, etc. 

Rinac’s modular cold rooms’ walls and ceilings are made of food-safe, high-density PUR panels with optimal thermal insulation and class O fire rating in accordance with BS 476. Plus, its insulated doors have an insulated core with PCGI lamination material which ensures very effective temperature control, improving overall energy efficiency. 

5. Features and accessories 

Many manufacturers provide additional features and accessories for better operational efficiency of modular cold rooms. These may include the following:

• Door, ceiling, and wall: We have already discussed the importance of wall, ceiling, and door insulation. Make sure to check the thickness, material used, fire rating, etc.
• Lighting: Lighting is also an important feature of modular cold rooms which can have an impact on your power bills. Usually, LED lighting is preferred over traditional bulbs. Moreover, ensure that the bulbs used inside the room are vapour-proof and unbreakable. 
• Alarms/safety systems: Effectively placed alarm systems can help detect sudden temperature changes, the functioning of the equipment, etc. For instance, some alarms can raise an alert if the door was left open. Rinac’s modular cold rooms are equipped with in-built pressure safety switches and control valves.
• Electronic controls: Electronic controls can make cold room operations much easier and more efficient. For instance, our modular cold rooms have fully loaded electrical control panels with microprocessor-based temperature controllers.

6. Maintenance

Regular maintenance can help increase your cold room’s service life. You should make sure to conduct frequency checks on electronic controls, compressor and evaporator units, lighting, etc. 

Many experts believe that regular checks are much easier and cost-effective in the long term as opposed to sudden failures or outages. Check with your manufacturer how frequently these checks are done and by whom. 

7. Customisation 

Make sure to check the level of customisation offered by your manufacturer. Rinac’s cold rooms come with different refrigeration capacities and dimensions to meet the business needs of small to medium-sized businesses. You can know more about technical specifications and dimensions here. 

Final Words

Modular cold rooms are gaining popularity for meeting small to medium-sized cold storage requirements. Usually, these cold rooms are built at the site and can be customized for the required dimensions and refrigeration capacity. When choosing the right modular cold room for your business, make sure to consider your need, temperature range, refrigeration system, energy efficiency, additional features and accessories, as well as maintenance and customisation options. 

Do not miss checking out LiteCold, Rinac’s series of modular cold rooms that support small to medium cold storage requirements!