If you’re shipping temperature-sensitive products such as food, beverages, or even medical supplies, then keeping those items at the optimal shipping temperature is crucial to retaining freshness, safety, and even medical efficacy. One way to maintain that temperature is through active control systems such as a reefer unit. Another, however, is to use passive temperature protection systems such as thermal quilt insulation.
Thermal Quilt Insulation Comes In Different Sizes
The size of the shipment is the biggest determining factor in how much thermal quilt insulation should be used. Obviously, the bigger the shipment, the more insulation is required. However, there are two approaches to this that can help narrow down the exact investment that will be required.
If a shipment takes up the entirety of a shipping container, for example, the better solution would be thermal quilt insulation applied to the entire container. This is a faster and more efficient solution, especially if the shipment is going to spend the majority of its time in this container, such as during a trans-Atlantic shipment.
On the other hand, if a shipment is very small and consists of only one or two pallets, the expense of insulating an entire container doesn’t make sense. At this point, thermal quilt insulation is applied just to the pallets that will be shipped. This is a much lower cost and makes for more efficient shipping, as well as providing an additional layer of “secondary protection” when items are removed from the shipping container and left to wait in uncontrolled environments—such as tarmac—before being loaded onto another vehicle.
Understand Your Needs
The best way to protect your temperature-sensitive products without overspending is to be diligent about understanding your logistics supply chain and its demands. If you’re shipping a lot and don’t experience too many transfers that take a lot of time, or the cargo remains in the same container for the vast majority of the trip, thermal quilt insulation for an entire container makes a lot of sense. However, this is a one-time-use product. On the other hand, if there are a lot of transfers and the shipment number is smaller, individual insulation for pallets is going to make more sense and offer your products more robust protection for a less stable logistics chain.
If you’re shipping temperature-sensitive products and want to know the best way to get those products to their destination safely, we can help. Contact us to explain your shipping needs and obtain a quote.
