NewCold, The Netherlands, broke ground on a new automated coldstore, located in Montauban-de-Bretagne, near Rennes.
The coldstore, designed by B-Built, The Netherlands, will use state-of-the-art technology, including automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) to automatically move and store products in the “dark” high-bay warehouse. The equipment and operators will be directed by advanced software systems, while products are kept in optimal conditions with all coldstore areas cooled down to temperatures as low as -23°C.
This advanced cold chain solution ensures that processes are sustainable, traceable and fully integrated in technological developments. Plus, the futuristic multi-customer coldstore enables food producers to optimize their cold chain management.
“With this ground-breaking development, NewCold brings to Montauban-de-Bretagne, Rennes, the Brittany region and France, 20 years of leadership in automated cold storage development and operations,” says Bram Hage, founding executive officer. “Although our roots are in the Netherlands, our heart is with global food producers whereever NewCold can bring value. We could not be more pleased than to stand as partners beside B-Built and our sponsoring customer, Froneri.”
The state-of-the-art freezer is a joint design effort and construction by NewCold and B-Built. The facility will what is said to be be one of the largest in France with a storage capacity of over 700.000 m3 comparable to the volume of 1 million household refrigerators.
“B-Built is excited to partner with NewCold on this facility, their second in France,” says Martijn Baartmans, chief executive officer of B-Built. “The unique method used to build this facility and the technologies incorporated within the facility are the way of the future, and we’re pleased to team with them and their storage partners to make it a reality. Leading-edge technologies used in addition to the automated pallet retrieval systems are the monorail system, the low-oxygen environment eliminating the risk of fire from the inside entirely and the total building design needing only half the energy consumed by conventional cold stores to keep the products optimally frozen."
