NEWS Integrated Reefer 2nd quarter 2019 By Søren Leth Johannsen, Chief Commercial Officer We are very proud to be celebrating the 10th anniversary of Star Cool’s world-leading CA system. Since the introduction of this ground-breaking technological advance, it has been a source of great satisfaction for us to watch the way it has revolutionised the global transportation of valuable perishable cargos: supporting producers, exporters and shipping companies in successfully developing their businesses. Not to mention offering more choice and higher quality to millions of consumers worldwide. On a personal level, I am delighted that many of our Star Cool CA customers have made the effort to send us their congratulations and best wishes to mark this major milestone in our company’s history. In recognition of this achievement, we have dedicated this edition of Integrated Reefer News entirely to Star Cool CA. Star Cool CA was originally developed as a means to expand the transportation window – and thus the geographical reach – of major commodities like bananas and avocados, supporting the transition from reefer bulk to reefer containers. The challenge we set ourselves was to find a way to ship these high-respiration fruits over long time periods in excess of 40 days, while ensuring that they arrived at their destination in perfect condition. The answer we found was the Star Cool CA system. The rapid success achieved with Star Cool CA in transporting these major commodities led our technical department to take the next step. Working in close cooperation with key customers, they began to investigate whether sensitive low-respiring perishables like blueberries could also benefit from being shipped in Star Cool CA reefers. Initially, due to their highly perishable nature, these seasonal delicacies were shipped by air. Finding a way to win this business for sea freight was clearly a very attractive proposition for container lines, however the third party CA systems that filled this gap were not contributing to the owner/operators revenue. The task was to develop, test and prove a reliable form of integrated CA reefer transportation, generating additional revenue for the liner and cementing the relationship between shipping lines and the exporters and consignees. Our technical teams realised that this could be achieved by creating an integrated CA system that would ensure the right balance of O2 together with high concentrations of CO2 and nitrogen. The key was mixing the optimal atmosphere for the fruit in the reefer prior loading onboard the vessel and thereafter letting the Star Cool CA system maintain and record these ideal conditions. The concept was prototyped, extensively field-tested and ultimately proven. High-value, low-respiring perishables could indeed be successfully transported over long distances by sea. We named the expanded CA concept “Star Cool CA+”. Like its predecessor, it has already assumed a powerful market position worldwide. Today, Star Cool CA+ has progressed from being simply a transportation mode to encompass a dedicated service provided by MCI at loading locations. In operational terms this means that we take care of the shipments at the depot and provide a total “one-stop shop” service. Right from preparing the Star Cool reefer with a CA PTI, leak-testing, sealing off doors with the CA curtain, injecting gases and monitoring levels directly on the unit display, to ensuring O2 and CO2 levels are stabilized and ready for loading on the vessel. Coincidently, our 10th anniversary also marks us passing the magical figure of 300,000 Star Cool reefers sold – over 55,000 of them equipped with our CA system. Thank you for your outstanding support over the last 10 years. We look forward to sharing continued success with you for the next 10!
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