From the food and drink industry to floristry, portable fridge units are required to help with deliveries. They’re a MUST have for businesses – providing that you want to supply the best quality products and comply with industry standards that is.
They’re often looked at as an expensive investment. Of course, any vehicle investment over the short-term seems expensive. However, over the long-term, you’ll reap the benefits of adding a portable fridge unit to your fleet. So, how do you know whether your business needs one or not?
We understand that it can be a little daunting when first finding out you need a portable fridge unit – but it doesn’t have to be. This article will outline the need for a unit in an array of industries and will look at the benefits that they can bring to your operations too.
We’ll cover:
- What is a Portable Fridge Unit? A Recap
- Comply with Food Hygiene Regulations and Best Practices
- Guaranteed Quality and Safety of Products
- To Increase Your Business Flexibility
What is a Portable Fridge Unit? A Recap
As the name suggests, a portable fridge unit is a trailer or unit within a vehicle to transport perishable goods. It can also be used as a temporary storage site, depending on how you long need the unit for. They come in all shapes and sizes, from smaller units that are designed to be catering bars to large units for chilled centres at large events – like festivals.
When we hear the word fridge, we automatically think of food. Or, is that just us thinking with our bellies? However, it’s not just the food and drink industry that could benefit from a portable fridge unit. Businesses that operate within the floristry industry or the pharmaceutical industry also need to store their products properly to cement their quality.
When handling and storing medicine, the temperature must be controlled. Otherwise, you run the risk of harming the medicine and reducing its potency, in turn, literally taking other people’s lives into your own hands. Should somebody, unfortunately, have an issue after you haven’t stored the medicine correctly, you could be facing huge compensation fines and the incident hanging on your conscience too.
Comply with Food Hygiene Regulations and Best Practices
Within the food and drink industry, products must be stored correctly. Fresh meat, fruit and vegetables all need to be stored at the right temperature to prolong their freshness and ensure that they’re fit for human consumption. Not storing them correctly can lead to illness and threaten people’s general health.
Within the industry, you MUST store food products correctly. And that’s not just by guidance, that’s by law. Food hygiene standards and regulations ensure that the industry is all working in line with the rules and regulations. There are no cutting corners in this industry and if you’re found to be bending the rules, you could be hit with fines and a reputation that may prove tough to shift.
The food industry relies a lot on suppliers transporting products to shops, restaurants and catering establishments. So, how are they going to be moved from one place to another while being stored correctly? The answer… a portable fridge unit. Attach it to a vehicle and load in your products, ensuring that they arrive at their destination in a safe condition and at the right temperature.
With the transportation food, you need to bear in mind that some items need to be chilled rather than stored at ambient temperatures. A portable fridge unit allows you to deliver a multitude of different items at different temperatures, that way, you’re always complying with industry best practices and regulations.
Should you deliver products that aren’t fit for human consumption or haven’t been handled properly, you run the risk of your customer declining to accept the goods and ordering a refund. Therefore, your wastage levels will increase and your profitability will take a hit. Portable fridge units are essential for transportation within the food and drink industry.
Guaranteed Quality and Safety of Products
Within the pharmaceutical industry, different medicine is advised to be stored at certain temperatures to prolong their shelf life. So, by introducing a portable fridge unit, you can be sure that you’re taking the right precautions to best position your business for success.
Within the industry, a lot of products are imported from other countries. That being said, it’s not good enough to store them properly on their arrival. They need to be transported properly too. You’ll need a portable fridge unit to transport them from their source to your distribution centre.
You need to think about the journey time specifically here – it’s no good having a unit that’s non-compliant with long journeys if you’re about to embark on one, is there? With that being said, there are various factors you need to consider to find the right portable fridge unit for your business. Time, length, weather and contingency plans should all be consulted.
Think about it, if you’re trying to transport these medicines using the wrong type of portable fridge unit, you’re not going to be able to guarantee the quality and safety of them. These products can be life-dependent medicines, so you must take every precaution possible so that you’re not toying with consumers’ overall health and wellbeing.
While portable fridge units do guarantee quality and safety of medicine – and other products – it’s crucial for the driver to know how to load them properly. If loaded incorrectly, the cool temperature won’t be distributed evenly, meaning that some products could be unbeknownst depreciating in transport. A lot of portable fridge units have lockable drawers for the safe transit of drugs and medicine.
Download our Pharmaceutical brochure discussing the Good Distribution Practice regulations
To Increase Your Business Flexibility
For businesses to be successful, they need to be flexible. A portable fridge unit allows you to be flexible and adapt to different scenarios. For example, if you have the option of extra storage with your portable fridge unit, you can bulk buy your stock. Buying in larger quantities is often a lot cheaper for businesses and with the option of suitable storage, can allow your business to house the extra products.
It’s also handy for the adverse. If products aren’t selling as well as you’d hoped, you’ve then got storage options to cover your back so you’re not increasing your wastage levels unnecessarily. That way, you can store them safely in the portable fridge unit, or transport them to another branch of your business – if you’re of the scale, of course.
Portable fridge units are purpose-built and are designed to withstand long journeys. With that in mind, you can increase your flexibility as there’s no place that’s unreachable for you to deliver to or collect from. Therefore, you can welcome business and custom from further afield. Also, you can look for new suppliers that may be cheaper now that you can make longer journeys.
One notable benefit of a portable fridge unit that exercises your flexibility is the option of having two different temperatures in a vehicle. So, for businesses who require the safe transport of food and drinks, pharmaceuticals and anything else temperature controlled, you have the flexibility of carrying a wide range of products and goods – without the need for a full temperature controlled vehicle conversion.
Being flexible is massively important – if you refuse to adapt as a business, you run the risk of being left behind by the competition. By adding a portable fridge unit to your fleet, you’re adapting to your customer’s needs and broadening your suitability.
CoolKit Can Help You Choose the Right Portable Fridge Unit
So, now you know the importance of having a portable fridge unit for your business, you need to know how to choose the right one. At first, they can seem like a large investment, however, they’ll definitely be worth it in the long run. You can look forward to always delivering on jobs and building the reputation that all your competitors will envy.
But which portable fridge unit is right for you? At CoolKit – we can help. We’re vastly experienced at helping businesses find the right solution for their needs and requirements. So, please don’t waste any time and get in touch today! Our expert team is always on hand to advise and assist, plus, answer any questions you may have.
