The modern-era calls for modern solutions to our production problems, and storage issues. Nowadays, we have been hearing a lot about cold storage facilities. Have you not still heard about it? So, what is a cold storage facility? In this article, we are going to explain the cold storage facility in great detail. So, be with us to understand cold storage, its development, and its usage in the modern world.
What is a Cold Storage Facility?
Simply described, a “cold storage facility” is a structure or venue created to preserve specific environmental conditions to safeguard temperature-sensitive goods. These warehouses appear ordinary from the outside, but they are different on the inside to serve a certain function.
The Development of the Cold Storage Facility
There is nothing new about cold storage and the related warehouses. Long before the comfort of home refrigerators and freezers was created, humanity preserved food at cool temperatures because humans have always required nourishment. The idea is that by keeping fresh produce cool, it will remain healthy and safe for a longer period of time.
Cold storage warehouses have developed over time from Victorian-era ice houses to industrial-size operations that make use of advanced, high-tech facilities, frequently with high degrees of automation.
The value of the worldwide frozen food market in 2018 was 260.8 billion US dollars. The COVID-19 pandemic then broke out.
The Pandemic Situation Gave Rise to the Value of the Cold Storage Units.
The pandemic situation was a trial of how reliable the cold storage or supporting logistical services were. The cold storage units were used to maintain the developing Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at extremely low temperatures.
As cold storage warehouses came under the spotlight, the biggest concern was how pharmacists and immunization clinics would manage to acquire and keep massive doses of vaccine at the necessary -70°C temperature.
Even though it was an ultimate control measure, we cannot ignore the daily requirement for refrigerated or frozen foods, other pharmaceuticals, and things that require cool or chilled storage. Cold storage is enormous in scope, and temperature-monitored warehousing is a critical link in the network. Thus, cold storage gained prominence.
Though it was used by clinics, businesses used cold storage solutions in vast amounts during the pandemic. The business’s freight could not travel across the world. Therefore, the freight had to be stored somewhere safe. Thus, cold storage solutions were tested, approved, and finally utilized by a large number of businesses across the world.
This blog is also worth reading for you:– What is the approximate cost of cold storage in India?
What Are the Types of the Cold Storage Facilities?
After discussing “what is a cold storage facility?”, let us see the different types of cold storage facilities.
There are just two elements that comprise the fundamental forms of cold storage warehouse operations: the exterior storage itself and the interior machinery. The shelves that are typical of most warehouse layouts are a component of the warehouse’s integrated structure. Irrespective of architectural style, every cold storage facility contributes to maintaining a steady interior temperature.
According to the needed temperature, cold storage warehouses can be broadly divided into two types
- Regulated refrigeration with a temperature range of 0 to 10 °C.
- Fully frozen, with a range of temperature of -30 to 0 degrees Celsius.
The Cold Storage Facility - Challenges and Requirements
There are various requirements for placing the goods in a warehouse. Some of them consist of:
- How will workers function in below-freezing temperatures?
- the higher cost compared to storage at room temperature caused by higher energy expenditures.
- How to manage, keep, and check a consistent temperature.
Many of these problems can be solved by thoughtfully choosing and creating specialized equipment, including conveyors and racks, that makes the best possible use of the available area. Process streamlining to lower overhead and labor expenses also includes mechanization and semi-automation.
Conclusion
A cold storage facility is a unit that has a controlled temperature. In this environment, the product is kept in a way that does not cause structural deterioration. So, cold storage facilities increase the shelf life of products to a greater extent.
