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Carbon Trust Loan helps fruit cold store modify refrigeration systems to improve efficiency.
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J.O.Sims are the No1 supplier of cranberry and wild blueberry ingredients in the UK & provides packing, handling, storage and distribution services. J.O.Sims have adopted a long term approach, this extends to environmental issues, where reducing their carbon footprint is seen as a clear priority.
With 80% of site energy being consumed by refrigeration at their Spalding facility, Sims approached specialist refrigeration company Excalibur LPA Ltd who surveyed the site and produced a report, which estimated that the efficiency of the refrigeration systems in their 75,000 ft2 coldstore could be improved by 30 - 40%.
The Excalibur proposal recommended the installation of Liquid Pressure Amplification and Inverter speed control of the condenser fans, in simple terms this solution allows the difference between evaporating and condensing temperatures to be reduced, In this case by up to 20 degree c (every 1 degree reduction improves efficiency by 2-4%).
As approved suppliers Excalibur were also able to apply for J.O.Sims to receive an interest free loan from the Carbon Trust to undertake the project. A pilot installation was undertaken by Excalibur to the first of four refrigeration packs, following commissioning the effect of the modifications could be seen immediately, the improvement in efficiency allowed the coldstore to recover temperatures quicker while energy consumption dropped by 48% representing an annual cost reduction of £10,000 and 79 fewer tonnes of carbon emitted every year.
Following the success of this project the remaining systems have been modified, the completed project will have reduced energy consumption by 500,000 kwh / year, and carbon emissions by over 270 tonnes. Operations Director Darren Crook commented "not only were the improvements in efficiency immediate and measurable, but previously it could take 48 hours to pull a chamber down to temperature this can now be achieved in 12 hours, enabling us to respond to customer requirements very much quicker".
Contact Information
Lawrence Leask
Excalibur LPA Ltd
Unit 7 The Beacon Centre
Solar Way
Solstice Park
Amesbury
SP4 7SZ
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