Thermo King unveils cold storage solutions for Covid vaccine in India

November 2, 2020: The end-to-end temperature-controlled cold chain solutions provider, Thermo King by Trane Technologies, has expanded its Indian portfolio of temporary storage solutions that can meet the requirements of global pharmaceutical companies developing Covid-19 vaccines.

“Pharmaceutical companies in final-stage clinical trials anticipate they will require strict temperature controls to safeguard their products – down to temperatures as low as -70 degrees Celsius. Thermo King’s solutions can enable these companies and their distributors to ensure the efficacy of their products through the entire cold chain – from air transport to marine, rail, trailer, last-mile delivery and at storage points along the way, said the release.

Kishor Patil, HVAC & transport, India & SAARC country leader, Trane Technologies, said, “We are excited to introduce this end-to-end global solution to the India market to safeguard people’s health and safety by providing the 'unbroken' link to cold chain solutions for Covid-19 vaccine distribution. In addition, we will further develop tailored products for local adaptations to meet the growing needs during and beyond the pandemic.”

“As one of the leading products of the intermodal transportation, we also have the SuperFreezer refrigeration unit with ultra-low temperatures down to -70°C that delivers unmatched low-temperature performance to maintain and deliver products of the highest quality, extending shelf life for increased profitability,” Kishor added.

According to the World Health Organization, nearly 20 percent of temperature-sensitive health care products are damaged during transport, and 25 percent of vaccines reach their destination in a degraded state due to breaks in the cold chain.

Dave Regnery, president and chief operating officer of Trane Technologies, said, “Our new cold storage solutions can maintain temperatures of -70 degrees Celsius for an extended period of time, can be leveraged to help reduce degradation of a vaccination, and most importantly, could prevent vaccine ‘deserts’ or lack of accessibility.”

“We have been engaging pharmaceutical and transport companies, policymakers, regulators and other industry partners to discuss ways to strengthen the cold chain,” said Regnery. “We know that we can help mitigate risk – we have a long history in cold chain expertise, and are actively working to innovate and address the complexities and potential challenges of the mass distribution of a temperature-sensitive vaccine.”

Additional storage solutions include refrigerated trailers, containers and portable cubes that can easily be scaled and repositioned to other locations as demand changes. In addition to launching Cold Storage Solutions, Thermo King has helped customers identify ways to maximize the range of dry ice, which is often used in vaccine transport and storage but has certain limitations. A container using dry ice to keep a product frozen may require re-icing if it sits for an extended length of time or is exposed to extreme ambient weather. Thermo King offers storage solutions that can substantially extend the life of dry ice, or eliminate the need altogether.