FEATURE
INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
Continued from page 37 allows companies to pay for refrigeration as a utility without owning the system. Basically, we install, manage, and own the refrigeration system on site, while the client only pays for the amount of refrigeration that they use, at an agreed-upon Randper-kilowatt-hours-refrigeration( R / kWhR) rate. Operation and maintenance are no longer the responsibility of the client, who can then focus on their core business.
To do this, we first had to overcome one significant hurdle before we could offer refrigeration to clients as a utility: measuring the refrigeration that a client actually uses is one of the trickier parts of an endeavour such as this. The only existing systems that were accurate enough were too expensive, so we first had to develop an affordable, accurate meter to accompany the systems we install.
Added to this, the installed cooling systems are also equipped with access to a Web-based dashboard, enabling clients to keep track of performance, key temperatures, billing, and the energy
consumption of the plant 24 / 7, while also allowing remote monitoring and operation of the system as required.
Clients maintain the right to assume ownership of the plant at any time.
Energy Partners Refrigeration already has a number of these projects under its belt. These include the installation of refrigeration plants for cold storage at a large dairy processor and an abattoir. New energy-efficient refrigeration systems have also been installed at four Pick n Pay and Spar supermarkets. In all cases, the systems have already achieved substantial savings for the clients, on top of the added peace of mind that their cooling is in the hands of experts.
Large corporates are also gradually moving towards this way of thinking. Yet, we have found that the large players in this industry still prefer to own the refrigeration systems themselves. Many of them, however, have begun to see the advantages of outsourcing operation and maintenance, since this saves them
A large-scale ammonia refrigeration plant providing 24-hour cooling for an ice rink.
Some clients are starting to see the advantages of outsourcing operation and maintenance, since this saves them both time and money in the long run. both time and money in the long run. GWK’ s abattoirs in the Northern Cape are currently being provided with low-cost hot water from our high-temperature heat pumps on an outsourced basis, and there is a project in the planning phase to outsource their refrigeration as well.
By understanding the fundamental dilemma our customers face in trying to reduce the cost of cooling, we could identify opportunities to reduce technical and financial inefficiencies in the energy industry and invest in these opportunities. CLA
COLD LINK AFRICA • July / August 2018 www. coldlinkafrica. co. za
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