For the second time in a month, a Tesco store in Little Lever (Greater Manchester) lost thousands of pounds of fresh and frozen food after chillers and freezers inexplicably broke down. Although technicians were able to get the units up and running within 24 hours, the store still lost almost all of its refrigerated and frozen stock in the incident. It just goes to show that you never know when you might need emergency chiller hire.
In 2008, Science Daily published a fascinating article about a new line of research aimed at producing solid-state refrigeration that was both highly efficient and practical to implement. Researchers involved in the project had high hopes that they could create a refrigeration process that would eventually lead to the elimination of compressors, coils and refrigerants that could harm the environment. Now it appears we are closer to that reality than ever before.
A severe heat wave that hit the UK in 2003 led to massive refrigeration failures in a variety of different industries. Hardest hit were supermarkets that found themselves completely unprepared without adequate backup refrigeration or resources to get their failed units back online. One would think we would have learned from the events of 12 years ago. Apparently not. The recent heat wave we just experienced resulted in the same kinds of failures. Whether supermarket coolers or walk-in cold rooms, the country’s equipment just could not withstand the heat.
In the race to develop natural refrigerants that do not harm the atmosphere, the world's developed countries are leaving no potential opportunities off the table. The eventual winner of this race may be the most unlikely of all: China. As a communist country known for its lack of environmental respect and manufacturing quality, China is the last country most would expect to achieve widespread use of natural refrigerants. Yet it looks like they are well on their way.