Teamwork makes the dream work

If you need extra cold space, you've come to the right place. From refrigerated trailers to cold containers, if you’re overheating because you’re running out of fridge space then Team Refrigeration can help. Mobile freezers and chiller units ranging from a few cubic metres in a fridge trailer right up to a huge 40ft container can be supplied on long or short-term hire.

Team Refrigeration is a subsidiary of Container Team, a successful hire company based in the West Country and operating across the UK. Back in 2006 the company realised that large capacity refrigerated storage containers weren’t always needed; there was a real demand for smaller, easy-to-use mobile cold storage. After looking long and hard at the best way to satisfy its customers’ needs, it came up with the ideal solution – the refrigerated trailer.

“We are a specialist supplier of refrigeration solutions,” begins Team Refrigeration’s business development manager, Julian Jones. “Most of our marketplace involves the catering industry. For example, imagine a top organisation holding a special dinner for some very important guests, when suddenly the venue hosting the event’s freezer breaks down - what can they do with all the expensive food they’ve been keeping in the freezer? They need an emergency solution and if they contact Team Refrigeration, we can get a freezer trailer on site, park it up, plug it into a 13A power supply, and they have temporary freezer storage facility that gets them out of trouble.”

Cool running

Jones goes on to explain how Team Refrigeration became involved in the composites manufacturing industry through a strange opportunity when they were contacted by a Formula 1 team whose own freezer facility, intended for storing prepreg material, was in crisis.

“The Formula 1 team’s freezer had suddenly died on them, so they were frantically trawling the Internet to look for a solution,” Jones explains. “They contacted us direct, and within three hours we had a mobile refrigeration unit setup onsite. All their prepreg stock was transferred into the mobile unit and the problem was quickly averted.

“We realised that this was a potential – albeit niche - market for us, so we attended the Advanced Engineering UK event and started talking to other people involved in the composites materials sector to learn more. We now offer a wide range of solutions: anything from a mobile trailer, which can be towed behind a 4x4 vehicle and can be transported anywhere in the country in a matter of hours, all the way up to a 40ft refrigeration unit that can be parked in the car park if you need to extend your capacity over a short period of time.”

Team Refrigeration offer a 24-hour network service throughout the UK. As its customers’ demands grow more specific, the management team need to think on their feet to obtain further solutions to prepreg material problems.

“We operate a 24-hour service to help customers get out of a potentially sticky situation. The typical value of the stock of the freezer for someone using prepreg materials could be anything from £25,000 to £100,000. If that freezer is out of action for a number of days then all the stock is wasted.”

Jones emphasises the Team’s focus on conserving customers’ valuable time: “Not only is the stock wasted, but the production time that the customer was potentially going to use that stock for has been wasted too. Furthermore, the deadline set by their customer has gone out of the window, and more importantly, their reputation has been seriously affected too.

“We offer a back-up plan that can help solve these problems. We know the markets our composite materials customers are trying to compete in. We understand that maintaining deadlines as well as customer’s reputations with their end customers is absolutely vital. We understand prepreg products and the temperatures these products need to be kept at, because we’ve had two years’ worth of experience helping out customers who have had this very problem. We’ve developed in-depth, in-house knowledge.”

Chilled and filled

Team Refrigeration’s chiller/freezer trailers operate from a standard 240V electrical supply or generator. The units can be positioned outside the customer’s facility, located in a company car park or inside a warehouse.

“Imagine you have just acquired a major project that needs extra freezer capacity for several months. The unique selling point of our 20ft to 40ft container trailers is that they are classed as non-permanent structures, and as such do not usually require any planning permission. All our freezer products operate at a constant 10° to -25°C; most prepreg materials tend to sit at about -18°C, so it’s an ideal solution. We also offer remote monitoring, so a customer can monitor the temperature within the refrigerated units from a remote distance.”

Team Refrigeration’s trailers normally require a short period of time to power up to optimum operating temperature. The company also manages all logistics, to get a haulier in place so that units can be delivered as quickly as possible.

“If you have a major project coming up, it’s worth thinking about a temporary solution rather than investing major capital into adding freezer capabilities, which you may not need in the long term,” Jones concludes. “We offer a viable alternative to an in-house facility, and whilst many composites manufacturing companies already have in-house facilities, we are always available to provide them with an emergency back-up solution should they need it.”

www.teamrefrigeration.co.uk