Cold Chain Packaging

Securing the cold chain shares the overall logistics trends of minimising cost, hazard and ecological impacts. Sofrigam has built its reputation on the bespoke design and manufacture of polyurethane cold chain packaging that fulfills all three aims. This page describes the bespoke design process.

Advances in bespoke design of insulated packaging
Before design, Sofrigam engineers specialising in the cold chain analyse customer logistics circuit needs. Their studies focus on:
• Risk analysis relative to temperature profiles
• The search for the ideal ratio between working volume and exterior volume
• Shipping preparation procedures that are both simple and rigorous

Next comes the packaging design phase. Vincent Bailleul, packaging engineer in Sofrigam’s Research and Development department, describes this part of the process.

“We start by drawing the heat insulated container using 3D software. The manufacturing machines can then use the files. The design office makes a single drawing, with no duplicates or repetitions, and our production colleagues use it to program parameters for the machine. The entire circuit is computerised from initial design to the manufacture of the finished product.”

Polyurethane: an effective and modular insulation
“We design bespoke solutions depending on the pharmaceutical products to be transported, by assembling different formats of polyurethane sheeting. This material is particularly useful for limiting empty spaces in the boxes and adapt to aviation-friendly platforms for long haul export logistics,” notes Laetitia Perche, Sofrigam’s marketing and communications director.

High density polyurethane has low heat conductivity (0.023 W/mK). Thanks to their excellent thermal performance, polyurethane panels optimise the working volume / outer volume ratio of insulated containers. In heat insulated packaging, this makes it possible to limit the need for added chilling and therefore optimise payloads in the transport box.

“The flexibility of the manufacturing process without need for tools makes it possible to make products that comply with the specific needs of the customers while guaranteeing quality and assurance of maintaining temperature between, +2°C and +8°C. We can work the raw material, insulating polyurethane foam, into precise shape required.” adds M. Bailleul.

Sofrigam cold chain expertise
Sofrigam specialises in transport of vaccines, ophthalmic products and chemotherapy solutions. Its main fields of expertise are export and long lasting protection over 72 hours (using chilling at 2 – 8°C or freezing temperatures down to -18°C). While EPS (expanded polystyrene) is adequate for domestic transport up to 24/48h, polyurethane is required for international shipping.

Sofrigam’s R&D department is expert in optimising products and researching new, ever more effective, simple to use, ecological and economical concepts. Sofigram develops more than 60 new product concepts every year.

Sofrigam has embedded all three key aspects of economy, safety and ecology in its overall design criteria. The result is that bespoke products offer high standards of performance and adaptability to customer’s own priorities.

For more information or to discuss the the bespoke design of economical, ecological and effective cold chain packaging please contact Sofrigam directly.