The cold chain is an extremely important process component for many sectors, from food to the chemical-pharmaceutical industry.
A lot of resources and attention are put into cold chain management to prevent a thermal shock from seriously compromising the quality and safety of the products involved.
The synergy within an integrated supply chain ensures compliance with predefined temperatures throughout the entire supply chain cycle: from transport to storage and display.
Maintaining the cold chain is crucial to avoid food spoilage or alteration of medicines. In order to avoid the risk of interrupting the cold chain, it is advisable to act by paying attention to all stages of the cycle, starting with the design of the cold rooms for processing and storing products.
In this regard, Manni responds with its Leaf technology applied to Isofrozen and Isofrozen Ht insulation panels.
Designing refrigerated rooms for the refrigeration industry with sandwich panels
Designing refrigerated environments with high thermal insulation performance is a prerogative of the refrigeration industry. In order to meet this requirement, specific insulation panels are used that allow low temperatures, often below 0°C, to be maintained.
For this purpose, Isopan has developed ad hoc insulation panels to create cold rooms and temperature-controlled working environments with.
Isopan sandwich panels have ideal technical characteristics for building both external enclosure walls as well as cold storage walls and roofs. This ensures proper thermal insulation:
- avoid dangerous temperature changes, potentially harmful to products and consumers;
- promote significant energy savings and reduce CO2 emissions.
In the panorama of cold chain insulation panels, Isopan offers a product consisting of a polyurethane or mineral wool insulation core enclosed between two metal faces. The latter are generally made of pre-painted galvanised steel, with the possibility of using finishes particularly suitable for food contact and whose properties guarantee safety and durability. Added to this is the possibility of combining different thicknesses, claddings and surface treatments to achieve high levels of performance.
Isofrozen and Isofrozen HT panels
Isopan provides designers and builders with its range of Isofrozen and Isofrozen HT sandwich panels for both external and internal infill (with variable thicknesses). These panels, insulated with polyurethane foams, have very high thermal insulation performance combined with good fire reaction and resistance.
The main characteristics of Isofrozen panels can be summarised as follows:
- Useful Pitch (mm): 1000 or 1150;
- Insulating thickness (mm): 80, 100, 120 (in the Isofrozen version); 120, 150, 180, 200 (in the Isofrozen HT version);
- Internal and external support: slatted micro-corrugated metal profile;
- Aluminium, pre-painted galvanised steel or STAINLESS STEEL cladding;
- Pre-painting: wide range of substrates with claddings for different applications;
- Installation: horizontal or vertical.
In addition to their excellent technical performance, Isopan panels combine the suitability of their substrates for occasional contact with foodstuffs and, thanks to their easily washable surfaces that are resistant to cleaning and disinfection processes, their resistance to corrosion and the growth of fungi and mould.
Leaf technology applied to insulation panels for the cold chain
Leaf technology applied to Isopan's Isofrozen and Isofrozen HT panels achieves remarkable results in cold chain management.
The primary objective of the cold chain is to keep the temperature low and constant, thus lowering thermal conductivity to achieve excellent insulation levels.
This is achieved with Leaf technology, which reduces - for the same thickness - thermal transmittance by 20 per cent compared to commercially available panels. Leaf acts by lowering the thermal conductivity values of polyurethane foam, the insulation used in insulation panels.
This technology, which is the result of studies carried out by Isopan's research and development department in the area of sandwich panels, is also appreciable for:
- Reduced panel thickness, thinner and lighter with the same U thermal transmittance;
- Safety in reaction to fire, proven by the European B-s1,d0 certification attesting to the absence of smoke from the foam's exposure to fire;
- Care for the environment thanks to the use of Halogen free FR (Flame Retardant) Technology for flame retardants, completely free of halogenated elements potentially harmful to the environment.
Leaf also competes for thermal insulation certifications that fall under the international LEED and BREEAM certifications.
LEED is a voluntary certification system applicable to both residential and commercial buildings and covers the entire building life cycle: from design to execution.
It promotes a sustainable approach towards:
- energy and water savings,
- reduced CO2 emissions,
- improving the ecological quality of interiors,
- attention to the materials and resources used,
- the project and site selection.
BREEAM is also a voluntary certification, based on a score whose sum determines the environmental performance of the building (rating) and the corresponding certification level. The approach is based on estimating several factors in order to assess the environmental load of the building. Originally intended for office buildings, it is now also in force for the residential, tertiary, commercial and industrial sectors.
In conclusion, the Isofrozen and Isofrozen HT panels with Leaf technology are an excellent answer to the needs of cold chain management. Thermal insulation, reduced thermal conductivity values and consequent energy savings make these panels an optimal solution for designers and builders in the refrigeration industry.
