For some types of cargo, like wines, pharmaceuticals, and even electronics, it’s understood that good temperature control is absolutely vital for these items to arrive at their destination and still be usable. There’s no argument that temperature control is essential, but why use a passive temperature control system, like pallet covers, when you could use an active system?
The Environmental Factor
Active systems, such as refrigeration units, are “resource heavy,” which means they will require power. Active refrigeration requires electricity in order to operate. So this means that energy is going to be required, and, on top of that, the environment may come to harm. Refrigeration units, in addition to requiring power, can create chemical by-products, such as CO2, which are harmful to the atmosphere when enough accumulate.
Something like a pallet cover, on the other hand, which is essentially a high tech layer of material that acts as insulation, creates no such by-products. It simply wraps around cargo and preserves the established temperature.
The Cost Factor
Active temperature control systems, because they require energy, also mean a higher cost is going to be involved. Depending on the destination of such cargo, such as from Asia to North America, this can mean a considerable expense to protect cargo for the many days at sea that the active control will need to be operating.
Passive temperature controls, on the other hand, have zero energy expenditure, and thus negate this cost entirely. In addition, they provide additional protection in one important way; during transfers. Cargo is not always immediately moved from one vehicle to another. In some cases, it may weight in a warehouse, or even airfield, exposed to the elements, for a few hours. Outside of active temperature control systems, cargo is vulnerable at this point, whereas passive systems are still protecting that cargo even while waiting.
