Storage is an important industrial aspect. No matter what the product is, its storage needs to be done. And if the products are perishable or may lose quality with time, proper storing of them becomes more important. Food, medical or flower businesses are the ones which essentially needs a storage room for their products. Unlike the normal storage rooms, these storage rooms must have optimum temperature to maintain the products in fresh and usable conditions. Food storage, among all, is utmost important not only for the business purpose but also for the eater’s survival.
Right from the basic storage concepts of using ice blocks or hay, new facilities have been evolved in the form of a room which is held at very low temperatures known as cold room. Features of a cold room:
- It is a walk in refrigerator having the size of 100 cubic meters. However, it can vary depending on the individual’s choices.
- These are meant for temporary storage of perishable products like food stuff, vaccines or medicines.
- The low temperature of the room prevents the proliferation of bacteria thus extending the conservation time of the products.
- Heat exchange in the room is maintained through some special devices.
- The whole unit can be assembled or disassembled quickly without much effort.
As discussed earlier that cold rooms come in variety of sizes and parts, you need to consider few things when investing in the same. Here are some points which you must consider before buying one: First of all, decide whether you actually need a walk in refrigerator or a large commercial refrigerator cabinet would solve your purpose. If so, go for the later as it is cost effective and consumes lesser space. Secondly, you need to look for the insulation you require. The standard thickness is around 80mm but there are designs with more or less. Though, additional insulation would cost you high, but it will become energy efficient as less power is needed to maintain the inside temperature.
Moreover, rooms with additional insulation are more efficient and last for around 10-20 years. The cold rooms may or may not have insulated flooring. Generally medium and freezer rooms do not have it while the chiller rooms have insulated flooring. Again, the insulated flooring cold room is expensive but more efficient which requires less running costs.
Last but not the least; you need to look for the height of the room. The standard one is 2100mm. with this height, it is quite easy to access your stock. However, if your stock demands more space, you can choose rooms with double the standard height. Precautions needs to be taken while maintaining a cold room
- Regular checking of moss growth
- Any spillage must be immediately cleaned as it may lead to growth of some foreign substances.
- Water accumulation should be prevented
- Door must not be left open as it may lead to condensation and thus temperature changes.
To help working with these precautions, modern cold rooms comes fitted with sensors, monitors and alarms to help the staff keep an eye on it every second.
