Reefer containers seem to be an increasingly attractive target for drug smugglers, offering opportunities to conceal narcotics in the cargo, and in spaces in and around the reefer machinery itself
After disposing of its dry container manufacturing facility in China, Maersk Container Industry (MCI) is looking to expand further and deeper into the cold chain.
Container throughput at US ports might not be showing a significant decline just yet, but there are signs from the container industry that the box shipping sector is heading for a slowdown.
In 2018, Thermo King launched a new slimline reefer unit, the SLXiDRC, for the North American market, where the standard domestic container length is 53ft long.
California-based electrical equipment manufacturer ESL Power systems has become a fully 100% employee-owned company through the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).
While Orbcomm remains highly optimistic about the reefer container sector, its truck and trailer telematics products for the US market are a different story.
Work continues on an ISO standard (ISO 20854) that would allow flammable refrigerants to be used in reefer containers. The ISO/TC 104/ SC02/ WG01 working group has been working on this since 2015, and the finish line is now in sight.
While other reefer OEMs look at R1234yf and other alternative refrigerants that are compatible with existing machinery, Carrier Transicold continues to move forward with its NaturaLINE reefer that uses CO2 as the refrigerant, which has a GWP of 1.