Cool- and Cold-Store Design and Construction

David Tanner, Start Afresh Limited, Mount Maunganui, New Zealand

2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Introduction
Site Selection
Material Selection
Insulation
Need for a Vapor Barrier
Doors
Room Layout
Loading Docks
Racking
Lighting
Refrigeration Systems
Summary
References

Introduction
The purpose of a cool- or cold-store is to hold perishable products at low temperatures. All cool- and cold-stores are insulated. This
insulation slows the heat gain into the store, but does not prevent it completely. Refrigeration is required to remove the heat that
enters through the insulation envelope, as well as the heat either in the product or, in the case of products that are alive, the heat that
they produce. Additional heat loads include heat that enters through doors; through the use of forklifts, fans, and lights; and
personnel, and these loads must also be managed. Building design and construction must be integrated with refrigeration plant
design and construction to create cost- and energy-efcient cool- and cold-stores (IPENZ, 2009).
This article covers the many facets of cool- and cold-store design, site selection, material selection, and layout needs for frozen
cold-storage and chilled storage. Refrigeration systems are covered in another section of the reference works and will be covered only
in brief in this article.

Site Selection
The criteria for designing of a cool- or cold-store are similar to those of any warehouse: storage capacity, facilities for receiving and
dispatching goods, and interior operating space (IIR, 1993; Figure 1). However, cold temperature facilities are unique in that they
generally are required to operate below ambient conditions, and so choices of construction methods and equipment, as well as site
selection, are important.
Important aspects for choosing a site for building a temperature-controlled facility are:
the earth is sound, free-draining, has good mechanical resistance, and is preferably at;
the site is located near major highways/arterial routes (possibly rail, or marine) for freight movement;
l there is sufcient space for all buildings, including any ofces, packaging stores, transformers, packhouses (if necessary);
l any future possibility for expansion;
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Figure 1 Commercial cold-storage facilities with loading docks (left). (Image courtesy of www.kerman.com.au (downloaded 5 January 2016).) and
showing the site layout (right). (Image courtesy of www.henningsen.com (downloaded on 5 January 2016).)

Reference Module in Food Sciences

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-100596-5.03478-8

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Cool- and Cold-Store Design and Construction

adequate sources of electricity and water, and work force; and

no exposure to environmental elements from which it cannot be protected.

Frequency of stock rotation, mode by which goods are delivered and dispatched, and trafc requirements will all dictate the
amount of area needed around the exterior of the store and the types of loading and unloading docks required. Depending on
cost of land, multistory storage facilities may prove economic. Such a decision brings with it greater logistic complexity, particularly
regarding movement of goods through multiple levels, but also the heavy-duty needs in construction (larger beams, deeper foundations, etc.).

Material Selection
Insulation
Insulation is an essential element in the construction of cool- and cold-stores (Figure 2). This element is designed to retain the cold
produced by the refrigeration system, so that it can be applied to maintenance of product temperatures.
The most common materials used for insulation of cool- and cold-stores are synthetic, plastic materials such as polyurethane,
polyisocyanurate, and expanded or extruded polystyrene (Figure 2), though berglass, glass foam, and rock wool can also be used.
The nal quality of any insulation is not only a matter of the properties of the material itself, but of the way it is integrated into
the cool- or cold-store. Thermal bridges should be avoided, e.g., those normally created by pipes, cable joints, etc. Piping which
carries low-pressure refrigerant or other liquids at low temperature must be insulated.
The thickness of insulation depends upon a range of factors including the internal temperature, heat conductivity of the insulation material, and the dew point of the ambient air, to avoid condensation. To ensure longevity and efcacy of the storage facility,
the insulation material should be protected against moisture and mechanical damage. Often insulation panel is protected by sheets
of aluminum, galvanized steel, or reinforced plastic. The choice of material should be t for purpose and appropriate for special use
conditions, e.g., the need for washing down.
When a controlled temperature storage facility is operated above 0  C, it is not necessary to insulate the oor. However, whenever the facility is operated at, or below 0  C, insulation in the oor is necessary on two fronts:
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This avoids excessive (and unnecessary) energy use as heat ingress from the earth below the oor can be high.
This prevents/reduces the ow of cold from the cool- or cold-store which reduces the likelihood of moisture in the ground
freezing. This freezing, as a result of the increase in volume as water becomes ice, can cause the foundations to heave, thus
twisting and potentially cracking the concrete structures and creating a greater risk of excessive energy consumption. Further
precautions may be required, depending on the operating temperature of the cold-store, such as the addition of underoor
heating.

Need for a Vapor Barrier

Another important consideration in the design of cold-stores is the prevention of the penetration of moisture. This requirement
exists due to the difference between internal and external temperatures giving rise to a water vapor partial pressure difference
that encourages the ingress of water from outside into the refrigerated space. When this vapor is cooled, it condenses and at the
point where the temperature is 0  C, it freezes to form ice. This process will continue over a long period of time and the buildup

Figure 2 Construction of a cool store with prefabricated expanded polystyrene cool store sandwich panel. Image courtesy of www.
southerninsulation.co.nz (downloaded on 2 February 2016).

Cool- and Cold-Store Design and Construction

of ice will eventually affect the insulation properties of the cold store wall and also weaken the structure of the wall or building.
Unfortunately, the outward effects of this buildup of ice may not show for some time (Johnston et al., 1994).
To prevent this type of destruction to the store insulation, a vapor barrier has to be provided on the warm side of the insulation.
A vapor barrier is any material used to prevent condensation formation on the cold internal surface, and is normally a foil sheet, that
prevents diffusion of moisture through a wall, ceiling, or oor assembly. This vapor barrier must be complete and cover all walls, the
roof, ceiling, and the oors.

Doors
The insulation of the cold store doors should be of the same standard as on the store wall. The most common insulation material for
doors is polyurethane. Door heaters should be tted to prevent ice forming at the seal thus jamming, and ultimately causing damage
to the door.
The types of doors tted in a cool- or cold-store depend on the purpose they provide. Small doors are used for personnel ingress
and egress and are generally constructed of the same materials as the cool- or cold-store wall panels. The more important doors are
those that allow the product to transit in and out of the store. These can either be manually opening sliding doors, often made of
insulation panel, or rapid roller doors that open vertically. Rapid roller doors often do not have a signicant insulating effect, but
provide benet in that they allow lower levels of heat (and moisture) ingress to the store due to their control of door-opening time.

Room Layout
The layout of a cool- or cold-store will ultimately depend on the product(s) being stored, its compatibility with other products, its
format during storage, and the logistics required on the site (loading, unloading, chilling, or freezing etc.). Multiroom facilities will
often be serviced by a central, temperature-controlled room loading space, that can also double as a stock-holding area for load
consolidation, a product-handling/assessment area, or temporary product storage space.

Loading Docks
For loading and unloading of goods, most storage facilities will have a loading dock(s) to facilitate movement of good on and off
trucks. The dock is built so that the cargo carrying deck of the truck can be accessed directly from the ground-oor height of the
store. Often inatable dock-sealing bags are used in cold-store loading docks to provide a barrier to heat ingress around the dock
when a truck is loading or unloading (Figure 3).

Racking
Pallet racking is utilized in many modern cool-and cold-storage facilities to allow efcient and safe space utilization (Figure 4).
Although there are many varieties of pallet racking, all types allow for the storage of palletized materials in horizontal rows with
multiple levels. Pallet racking systems are designed to increase storage density of the stored goods; however, costs associated
with the racking increase with increasing storage density.
Some disadvantages of high-density pallet storage systems are that there is often less access to all stock at any given moment
(although if the stored product is all the same, it may not matter) and that the systems are more expensive than stacking of product
on the cool- or cold-room oor. Selective pallet rack systems are considerably less expensive per pallet position than their

Figure 3 A loading dock for a cold-store with inatable side curtains to reduce heat and moisture ingress into the refrigerated space. Image courtesy of www.doortech.ca (downloaded on 2 February 2016).

Cool- and Cold-Store Design and Construction

Figure 4

A pallet racking system installed in a cold-storage facility. Image courtesy of www.ssi-schaefer-asia.com (downloaded on 2 February 2016).

higher-density counterparts. In most medium to large facilities, however, high-density pallet rack systems are essential, since they
provide the efciency of time and high cost facility space is better optimized (Figure 4).

Lighting
A cool- or cold store will require lighting to facilitate a safe working environment for personnel (such as forklift drivers). The selection of appropriate lighting needs to bear in mind that this is a source of heat load in the store, so this factor must be balanced with
the need to provide adequate visibility. Unprotected glass lamps are not commonly used in cold-store applications as they create
a hazard and food safety risk should breakage occur.

Refrigeration Systems
The refrigeration system must be designed with the requirements of the product to be stored in mind. It must provide adequate
cooling capacity for peak product and ambient heat loads. Modern cool- and cold-stores will have forced air circulation systems
and large evaporator surface areas and air distribution through air ducts, false ceilings, or by having sufcient packaged evaporator
units distributed throughout a cold room.
The most common refrigeration systems for large cold stores operating at frozen storage temperatures are two-stage compressor
systems, with pump circulation of liquid refrigerant to an air cooler. A range of refrigerants are used in frozen applications, such as
ammonia (generally in large installations) and R134A and R404A in smaller installations. These systems are defrosted (where ice
that forms on the evaporator surface is melted) using water/glycol sprays, hot gas (refrigerant), or electric heating.
For chilled cool-stores, the most common system is a vapor compression refrigeration system that operates either as a singlestage or two-stage. A range of refrigerants are used in chilled applications, including ammonia, glycol, and various synthetic refrigerants (depending on the specic temperature requirements and products being stored). As with frozen applications, these systems
are defrosted using water/glycol sprays, hot gas (refrigerant), or electric heating.

Summary
This section of the Reference Module in Food Science intends to cover important topical aspects associated with the design and
construction of refrigerated storage facilities. Research and development is ongoing in this space, particularly in the design and
construction of insulating materials, and the design of cool- and cold-stores that are increasingly more automated. The section

Cool- and Cold-Store Design and Construction

covers the basic design and construction of these facilities and provides users and practitioners with useful information from which
to expand their knowledge, or optimize their supply chain.

References
IIR, 1993. Cold Store Design, third ed. International Institute of Refrigeration, Paris, France.
IPENZ, 2009. Coldstore Engineering in New Zealand. Institute of Professional Engineers of New Zealand. Practice Note 15. ISSN:11760907.
Johnston, W.A., Nicholson, F.J., Roger, A., Stroud, G.D., 1994. Freezing and Refrigerated Storage in Fisheries. FAO Fisheries Technical Paper. No. 340. FAO, Rome, 143 p.