During this challenging time, safely transporting refrigerated essentials such as food, medicine, and blood plasma is a priority.
Take action to mitigate risk in ones cold chain by adopting the following Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). If temperature-sensitive cargo is improperly handled, there is a risk of temperature excursions, which can negatively affect public health, reduce product shelf life, or lead to rejected loads. These situations can increase ones operating costs and negatively impact ones reputation within the industry.
Maintain Precise Temperature Control
Ensure ones trailer is optimized to maintain the desired temperature. There are various configurations that improve airflow within the trailer and can help the trailer refrigeration unit work as efficiently as possible to maintain tight temperature control.
Air Chute
Airflow helps reduce the risk of hot spots around the temperature-sensitive cargo Airflow throughout a trailer is key to ensuring that the entire trailer is at the desired set point and reducing the risk of hot spots, especially around temperature-sensitive cargo.
With the use of an air chute down the top of ones trailer, cold air is funneled to the back of the trailer before it cycles through back toward the front, which reduces the risk of short cycling.
OptiSet Plus
Featured in both the single-temperature and multi-temperature Thermo King truck and trailer units, OptiSet Plus ensures that temperatures are optimized and personalized with pre-set profiles for ones cargo.
OptiSet Plus has over 500 cargo profiles available to ensure ones refrigeration unit delivers what one expect. Trip after trip, one can be confident that temperature set points and ranges are locked into best match ones needs while resulting in fewer shipper and driver errors, and improving the efficiency of ones reefer unit.
Door Switches
It’s best practice to turn off the trailer before the doors are opened and cargo is loaded. If the doors are open and the unit is running, hot air is pulled into the trailer. In food distribution with multiple stops throughout the day, drivers may forget to turn off the unit before the cargo is unloaded, which will increase the overall trailer temperature.
With door switches, the unit can be configured to turn unit off when doors are opened. This process will automatically protect the integrity of ones cargo until the last skid is unloaded.
Maximize Logistics Traceability
If one know immediately when a problem occurs, one can gain the visibility needed to initiate an effective response. This will ensure that ones fleet is kept up and running.
Telematics
TracKing delivers real-time and historical temperature data alongside fleet information TracKing, a 4G LTE temperature and asset management system offered by Thermo King. This technology delivers real-time and historical temperature data alongside fleet information – all to help one increase fleet efficiency and reduce the potential for cargo loss.
With TracKing’s reporting features, easily share ones trip status from pick up to delivery for transparency to ones end customer as well as for regulatory compliance records.
Independent Sensors
Independent sensors are ideal for providing a separate data point on the temperature within the trailer. The main two sensors are on the refrigeration unit - the return air sensor and the discharge air sensor.
With increasing regulations, there is a need for independent sensors to confirm the accuracy of the host unit as a risk mitigation measure to protect against instances of unit sensor errors.
Achieve Quality Assurance
Take simple steps to achieve quality assurance by doing the following:
- Integrate load practices into ones SOPs.
- Work with ones transporter to review their trailer and how it is optimized for tight temperature control. Does it have air chutes, door switches, sensors, etc. and is it reliable?
- Validate the various levels of visibility set up to reduce risk and catch problems before they occur such as TK Notify and status lights.
TK Notify
With TK Notify one’ll know exactly what’s happening inside the trailer and can contact the driver immediately Set alerts for ones cargo so one are immediately notified of any event. Is a door open? Was there a change of set point? Was there a shutdown alarm or increase in temperature?
With TK Notify, provided by Thermo King, one’ll know exactly what’s happening inside the trailer and can contact the driver immediately. one can even set up an escalation process if an event continues to occur with no action taken to change the status.
Status Lights
With status lights, ones driver will have a visual reminder of the set points within the trailer, the refrigeration unit fuel levels, and any alarms occurring on the unit.
With real-time feedback, the driver won’t need to exit the tractor to verify immediate condition changes. This redundancy measure, paired with monitoring via TracKing, will reduce risk.
Checklists and tips
Loading and delivery checklists and tips for proper airflow to ensure even greater protection for ones cargo.
