In the ever-evolving world of shipping, ensuring that temperature-sensitive products remain in pristine condition is a paramount challenge. The consequences of a cold chain failure are severe, leading to valuable products turning into waste. Shockingly, an estimated 30 to 40% of food produced in developed countries is discarded before it reaches the market, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Moreover, mishandling in the cold chain can compel shippers to discard critical healthcare commodities.
To combat these challenges and maintain the quality of cold products, shippers must diligently control and monitor freight temperatures during transit and storage.
Rising Demand and Growth in Cold Chain Logistics
The demand for cold chain logistics services is on the rise, with a projected compound annual growth rate of 15.9% in the United States from 2023 to 2032, as forecasted by Precedence Research. As the volume of goods flowing through the cold chain increases, technology developers are stepping up to the plate, introducing innovations in sensing, monitoring, packaging, and more. These innovations not only help shippers maintain product integrity but also contribute to reducing waste and minimizing environmental impact.
Warehouse Strategies: NewCold and Leonard’s Express
Responding to market shifts, NewCold, a global food logistics provider based in the Netherlands, unveiled a cutting-edge cold storage facility in Lebanon, Indiana, in October 2023. The facility, developed in partnership with Conagra, caters to the needs of large, highly automated food processing companies dominating the market for processed foods. With 100,000 pallet positions and plans to double its capacity, the facility maintains a freezing temperature even in its dock areas, setting it apart from traditional frozen food warehouses.
Similarly, Leonard’s Express, a trucking company from New York, opened a temperature-controlled warehouse in Shortsville, New York, in response to changing consumer habits. The 114,500-square-foot facility provides both refrigerated and frozen capacity, with a focus on maintaining optimal conditions during loading and unloading. Leonard’s Express employs dock doors that allow workers to open trailers inside the building, preventing warm air from infiltrating the frozen space.
Cold Freight in Transit: Courier Connection
For courier companies like Atlanta-based Courier Connection, monitoring temperature during transit involves relying on advanced technology integrated into refrigeration units. The company’s fleet, equipped with the latest Freightliner trucks and robust refrigeration units, ensures that the correct temperature is maintained for the load. In the rare event of a temperature anomaly, alarms alert the driver, prompting a swift transfer to another refrigerated truck.
Some customers take an extra step by placing temperature monitors inside the load, allowing them to track their products in real-time through mobile apps. This proactive approach ensures the quality and safety of the freight, with most shipments arriving in good condition and promptly transferred to refrigerated rooms at their destinations.
Sensing as a Service: Wiliot’s IoT Pixels
Wiliot, headquartered in Israel with U.S. offices in San Diego, offers a unique solution for shippers wanting a closer view of chilled products in transit. Wiliot’s “IoT pixels,” small devices resembling postage stamps, measure conditions such as temperature and humidity. These battery-free pixels communicate via Bluetooth with readers installed at various points throughout the cold chain. Placed on pallets, cases, or individual units, they provide accurate and continuous data, offering a more comprehensive understanding of the conditions during transit.
Wiliot’s “sensing as a service” platform allows for precise tracking of reusable transport packaging, enabling food companies to monitor inventory, shipping, and delivery effectively. The data collected by the IoT pixels is transmitted to Wiliot’s cloud-based platform, and the company provides application programming interfaces (APIs) for customers to integrate this data into their monitoring applications.
AI-Powered Monitoring: EROAD’s CoreTemp System
In the realm of temperature monitoring, EROAD, a New Zealand-based firm with a North American division in San Diego, introduces the CoreTemp system. This innovative solution utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) and proprietary algorithms to determine the actual temperature of products in transit without the need for physical sensors on the freight.
EROAD’s CoreTemp system was developed in response to the reluctance of trucking companies to have drivers stop periodically to insert probes into temperature-controlled products. The system simulates temperatures by creating custom algorithms based on a profile of the shipper’s most at-risk product. Using machine learning, the system predicts how the temperature of the product would behave in various situations, providing a more accurate representation of the load’s conditions than traditional temperature tracking methods.
Companies such as Quality Custom Distribution, serving customers like Starbucks, Casey’s, and 7-11, have embraced CoreTemp to enhance their temperature monitoring capabilities.
Innovations in Packaging: Cold Chain Technologies (CCT)
While many cold chains rely on electric-powered systems (known as “active shippers”), passive cooling plays a crucial role in certain shipments. Franklin, Massachusetts-based Cold Chain Technologies (CCT) specializes in providing passive thermal packaging for a range of products, from pallet-sized loads to small parcels. This is particularly important for customers shipping high-value life science products such as pharmaceuticals and biologics.
CCT not only addresses the need for effective passive cooling but also emphasizes environmental sustainability. Alongside one-time use packaging, CCT offers reusable thermal shippers and packaging that can be recycled at the curbside. For instance, Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines in the United States were transported in reusable thermal containers from CCT.
As customer demand for visibility grows, CCT collaborates with technology vendors and transportation companies like UPS and FedEx to provide tracking through its web portal, CCT Smart Solutions.
The Case for Natural Refrigerants: North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC)
The chemicals used in most refrigeration systems today, known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), contribute significantly to carbon footprint and environmental harm. The North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC), a not-for-profit organization based in Mill Valley, California, has been actively working since 2015 to encourage the adoption of refrigerants that are more environmentally friendly.
HFCs, commonly used in refrigeration systems, have the potential to warm the planet hundreds of times more than carbon dioxide. To address this issue, the NASRC advocates for natural refrigerants like CO2, propane, and ammonia, which have a lower environmental impact.
Supermarkets, in particular, are urged to transition to cleaner alternatives. The NASRC acknowledges the challenges associated with making this switch, including the need for installing entirely new cooling systems. However, they emphasize the importance of creating financial incentives through government initiatives to make these projects more feasible.
While only a few stores have made the switch to natural refrigerants so far, the NASRC observes progress in the industry’s mindset and increasing focus on addressing environmental concerns.
In conclusion, the cold chain logistics sector is undergoing a transformative phase with innovative solutions designed to enhance efficiency, reduce waste, and minimize environmental impact. From state-of-the-art warehouses to AI-powered temperature monitoring and sustainable packaging, these advancements are crucial in ensuring the integrity of temperature-sensitive shipments as they traverse the complex cold chain network.