FEATURE
INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
the condenser. The pipe work must be
accessible for leak checking and repair.
Take into account the required lifespan of
the design, advises Smith. How long will the
client expect this plant to last before they
replace it? “Remember, some refrigerants
will eventually have finite lifespans, or cost a
premium before their phase out.”
Cost versus COP is what you need to
look at, Hanssen advises. “That’s how we
should be working. Putting it into perspective
is very useful. Don’t just give the retailer
the cheapest option, but rather the best
option in terms of efficiency that fits their
requirements. One needs to look to the
future and consider the escalating electricity
costs and maintenance costs, too.”
STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS
All the latest South African National
Standards (SANS) must be adhered to and
all technicians/designers working on these
refrigeration systems must be registered and
trained by the South African Qualification
and Certification Committee for Gas
(SAQCC Gas).
SANS 10147, ISO, and International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)
Standards or equivalent are relevant. In
addition, consider inputs from ASHRAE, the
International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR),
and other international publications for
additional information, advises Kriel.
THE FUTURE
So, where are we headed; what does the
future of supermarket refrigeration look like?
Natural refrigerants will become more
part of the mix, predicts Hanssen. He has
also noticed how self-contained refrigeration
is coming to the fore more in Europe in
particular. Express stores are also a big trend.
“Retailers are going to find it very hard to
operate as they have been,” says Hanssen.
“Cost structures are very high and the cost
of running a store is also high. Efficiency will
become more prominent.”
Hanssen sees manufacturers getting
involved to make things easier for
technicians in future. “Because unless the
industry grows with the retail market, we
have to as manufacturers make it easier for
installers from our side. Retailers will continue
putting pressure in terms of pricing, but
that doesn’t mean you have to drop your
standards. It’s about a better way of working
together as an industry and supporting the
industry and technical training to uplift skills
and knowledge. With those things in place,
the industry will have a good future.”
Training on all levels is very important for
the future, says Breckle. Especially at grass
roots level. “Quality should be a trend going
forward in all new systems. People just do
what they have to do. They should be doing
what they can to make it more profitable
and efficient.”
“It comes down to pride, says Hanssen.
“You have to have pride in everything
you do. If you have pride in what you do,
the work should speak for itself and be of
good quality.” The customer must be proud
of what system he’s put into his store. Be
proud that he’s making the right choice;
the way he operates the store and ensures
maintenance is done.
“People are starting to take data seriously
and making systems more measurable,”
says Breckle. Technology like apps are very
exciting. We’re getting to a stage where we
can see per fridge what it is consuming every
day. These are very nice triggers. If the client
is interested in what’s happening, it spills over
to staff. The correct service calls are placed
and the correct logging is done. You can
stop putting out fires.
“The supermarkets of the future will not
only provide fresh food and keep families
sustained; they will transform the energy grid
and enable it to become safer, cleaner,
and more flexible,” predicts Naidoo. “They
will be a key element of the decentralised
energy system of tomorrow
and will set a new standard
for efficiency by sharing
their surplus energy with
their neighbours, reducing
energy costs, and providing a
backup power source.”
The future is definitely more
sustainable. A lot of new
technological advancements
are geared towards optimising
the cold chain, from farm to
fork, explains Naidoo. “Not
only does an energy-efficient
cold chain reduce CO 2
emissions, but it also helps to
deliver on many of the UN’s
Sustainable Development
Goals.”
“Technology for energy-
efficient cold chains, like
cold storage rooms and
Natural refrigerant products for retail applications were
energy-efficient refrigerated
widespread at the 2018 Chillventa show and manufacturers
trucks, already exists,” explains are spending a lot of R&D in this field.
Naidoo. “However, to make
progress with sustainable cold chains, we
procurement, and maintenance is
need increased awareness on the topic and
provided by specialists and the client
the right conditions within governments.”
pays only for the refrigeration cooling
“In my opinion, small compact natural
used as a utility,” he says.
gas solutions that are very energy efficient
“I think supermarket refrigeration
will be in demand,” predicts Kuzma.
is difficult to predict because new
“Placing doors on refrigeration cases will
technologies are being discovered,
also become the norm to further reduce
invented, and older ideas are being
energy consumption and enhance the
reinvented as well,” says Smith. “I think
cold chain.”
we can expect that the expectations of
Kriel sees a combination of the
refrigeration systems will become more and
technologies currently available with an
more competitive.” The cost of refrigeration
increase in low global warming potential
is an extremely competitive market,
(GWP) refrigerants and better efficiencies
especially in the supermarket environment.
in future.
Continued from page 41
He also predicts that it will become
easier to interface with the equipment
and diagnostics of the plant. As well as
increased remote supervision of the store
and plant on a continuous basis. “In
future, we’ll also see more outsourced
cooling where plant ownership, design,
COLD LINK AFRICA • March/April 2019
“The need for energy efficiency and
performance will be driven to higher
expectations from equipment, and
surrounding it all will be the drive to make
systems more environmentally friendly
with low carbon footprints,” concludes
Smith. CLA
www.coldlinkafrica.co.za
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