Choosing a Professional Refrigerator: It Is About More Than Keeping Food Fresh
A representative of refrigeration equipment company ALFIS says choosing a business refrigerator should start with what will be stored, the required temperature and how heavily it will be used. The purchase price is only part of the total cost.
In a pharmacy, laboratory or production company, the contents of a single refrigerator can be worth tens of thousands of euros or more. A temperature deviation can endanger that value, halt operations and cause losses well above the price of the unit itself. This is explained by Mārtiņš Zeimanis, product group manager at ALFIS, a company that sells and services refrigeration equipment.
Where to start
According to Zeimanis, the first step is to establish what will be kept inside, which temperature regime is needed and how intensively the unit will be used. A pharmacy, a restaurant and a manufacturer's laboratory all have different requirements.
Why cold alone is not enough
A refrigerator constantly moves heat from its interior to the surrounding room. Each door opening or placement of warmer products adds load, and in a professional kitchen the unit must also cope with a hot room. The temperature shown on the display does not guarantee the same temperature on every shelf: air circulation, insulation, product placement and the speed at which the set regime is restored after the door closes all matter. Professional units can be fitted with temperature and door alarms, data logging and remote monitoring.
Different sectors, different needs
Restaurants, hotels and caterers value durability, easy cleaning and stable operation under heavy use. Bakeries and confectioners need tray-compatible interiors and a suitable humidity regime. In shops, the unit both stores and displays goods, so glass doors, lighting and energy use matter. In pharmacies, medical facilities and laboratories, temperature control is critical; the range runs from medicine refrigerators to laboratory freezers reaching −86 °C. Cosmetics makers, technology firms and chemical companies can have similar needs.
Price is not the only criterion
LIEBHERR, the manufacturer represented by ALFIS, cites more than 70 years of experience in cooling. For professional equipment it designs for a 15-year service cycle, but this is a design target, not a warranty period.
Companies should also weigh electricity use, maintenance, repairability and service availability. If the unit holds valuable goods or irreplaceable samples, the calculation should include possible downtime and the consequences of losing the contents. Savings at the time of purchase should be weighed against the risk the company takes on while using the equipment.
