Cold Chain Refrigeration

products-servicesSofrigam S.A
April 22nd 2015

Temperature-controlled storage and shipping is a complex activity with many dimensions. While part of the challenge involves preventing temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical and biotech products from overheating (‘cool chain’), another involves actively keeping products chilled. This is ‘cold chain’ logistics, which involves refrigeration.

Cold chain refrigeration has its own challenges – not least of which is how to keep products cold over days in transit, without access to electrical cooling.

Part of the answer lies in chemical or other cooling media and the other part depends on highly effective insulation. Sofrigam has developed mastery of both aspects.

Cooling media

A traditional way of keeping goods frozen while in transit is to use solid carbon dioxide, better known as ‘ dry ice ‘. The main advantage of dry ice is that it is a powerful cooling medium, capable of keeping the consignment very cold, as low as -78°C (-95°F) over extended periods.

Dry ice drawbacks
However, dry ice also has grave disadvantages, particularly for biotech and other life sciences products. One of the most serious drawbacks is that as the dry ice ‘melts’ (sublimates) it turns straight into carbon dioxide gas removing oxygen from the container. This can cause biological samples to spoil and can damage some chemical products.

Furthermore, dry ice has to be added in the form of heavy slabs, which are complicated to secure against becoming dislodged, damaging fragile goods. Finally, dry ice is a relatively coarse cooling medium, difficult to maintain at cold, rather than freezing, temperatures.

Eutectic gels
For all these reasons, Sofrigam prefers to use eutectic gel packs as the cooling media in cold chain refrigeration.

‘Eutectic’ means that the gel is a mixture of two or more substances, whose combined melting point is lower than the individual elements. Their eutectic point is the temperature maintained as the mix melts, in this case transforming from solid to liquid.

Because of this, cooling gels are contained in moisture tight rigid containers or flexible bags.

Sofrigam’s range of Snowgam® cooling gels use mixtures of carboxymethyl and cellulose, varied to provide a range of eutectic points.

  • Blue eutectic gel for temperatures between +2°C and +25°C
  • Pink eutectic gel for temperatures of down to -18°C
  • White eutectic gel for temperatures between -15°C and -5°C
  • Flexible blue gel pack for phase change temperatures at around 0°C

Gel advantages
Eutectic gel packs have a range of advantages for cold chain refrigerated transport of life sciences products.

    • Slow controlled release

The slow sublimation of the gels means that temperatures can be maintained more precisely over longer periods.

    • Sustainability and safety

Gel packs can be reused and recycled and contain no gas, making them airfreight-friendly. They are also non-sensitizing, non-toxic and non-mutagenous towards genetic products. Gel packs have been approved for use in contact      with foods or other products for human consumption.

    • Convenience

Gels can be supplied separately or with refrigerated boxes. They are available in different sizes and as flexible or customized units, making it easy to calculate the exact gel package needed to cool the individual consignment.

Cold chain packaging

No cooling media, no matter how effective, will succeed in keeping products refrigerated unless it is combined with a container purpose designed for cold-chain refrigerated shipping. Such a container must combine effective thermal insulation with a packaging format that keeps both product and cooling media secure.

Sofrigam offers a range of different cold chain packaging solutions, each optimized to different application.

Frizbox® range
Sofrigam’s original 100l Frizbox® pallet shipper revolutionized temperature-controlled logistics by providing an insulated container suitable for bulk cold chain shipping of refrigerated products via normal transport over long transit times (up to 120 hours).

The later Frizbox® XXL Pallet Shipper variant leveraged the concept into a 2,000 liter format that conforms to aircraft unit load device (ULD) standards. Most recently, this has become available in flat pack format for local assembly by one person within five minutes. This innovation, allowing lower storage and transport costs for the containers reduces TCO all along the cold chain logistics pipeline.

Sofribox®
Sofribox® is a sophisticated insulated box specifically designed to safeguard cold chain refrigerated products. The external cardboard overwrapping conceals high-density rigid polyurethane panels that provide an unbeatable combination of high thermal insulation, structural strength and low weight.

The Sofribox can be used transport chilled or frozen products over long distances while remaining highly resistant to thermal shocks (e.g. moving into a tropical zone). It can be supplied in capacities ranging from one to 500 liters and fitted out internally with dividers to keep goods separated from each other and gel cooling packs.

The Sofribox can maintain goods at temperatures defined by the various gel packs for up to four days. For extreme conditions, the Sofribox® VIP, with enhanced vacuum insulation panels, will keep refrigerated products safe for up to ten days, even under tropical conditions.

Standard Sofriboxes have unobtrusive plain appearance to keep them discrete. However they can be branded where required.

UN3373 Clinibox®

Certified to UN3373 standard, the Clinibox® range of refrigerated packaging is designed to protect and safeguard the transport of fresh or frozen clinical trial samples for up to 96 hours at temperatures down to -18°C.

Clinibox® incorporates compartmentalization and individual absorbent test tube bags to ensure fully protected transport of clinical trials, diagnosis samples, biological samples and other ultra sensitive products. It is available with internal capacity ranging from 1L to 30L.

Plasibox®

Plasibox® is Sofrigam’s rigid and sturdy all purpose icebox for keeping products chilled down to -5°C for up to two days. Used with gel packs, the rigid icebox can be used for short to medium journey accompanied transportation of pharmaceutical, biotechnological or food products that absolutely must remain chilled or frozen.

Constructed from rigid high density polyurethane, the box offers very low thermal conductivity but high ability to withstand mechanical impact. Plasibox is avaialbe in capacities up to 45L.

Sofribag®

The Sofribag® is a light, flexible and user-friendly insulated bag constructed of high thermal performance polyurethane foam, nylon and PVC that incorporates carrying handles, document pocket and zip closure. By adding a cooling gel back, the Sofribag becomes a refrigerated carrier that is ideal for carrying chilled or frozen products such as medicines or vaccines quickly from point to point.

With cooler pack, Sofribag® will keep products chilled or frozen for a full day, more than enough time to make journeys between laboratories, hospitals or dispensing pharmacies. Carrying capacities range from 1L to 35L.

Textibox®

The Textibox® is a practical and efficient insulated rigid textile ice box that combines the thermal performance and capacity of a Plasibox® with the ease of handling of a Sofribag®. Its high performance rigid polyurethane insulating panels and capacity for an additional cooling pack allow it to keep products chilled or frozen for up to 48 hours.

Resources

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Supplier Information
Supplier: Sofrigam SA
Address: 212 avenue Paul Doumer, 92508 Rueil Malmaison, Cedex, France
Tel: +33 (1) 46 69 85 00
Fax: +33 (1) 47 25 98 44
Website: www.sofrigam.com