Sure Chill passes the solar test in cloudy Vietnam

To prove just how effective Sure Chill is at maintaining the cold chain in any climate, a solar powered version of a Sure Chill refrigerator was tested in Vietnam by an independent organization. The result was solar-powered cooling like never before.

The shortcomings of conventional solar power

Transporting life-saving vaccines through some countries poses many problems. The most fundamental being power. Vaccines need to be kept between 2 and 8°C so the refrigerator storing them needs constant, reliable power or the entire shipment will be ruined. In parts of the world without a regular power supply, it’s virtually impossible. Even a solar powered refrigerator needs sunshine and costly batteries that have to be replaced regularly – and more often in extreme heat.

Solar power that doesn’t rely on batteries. Or the sun.

Sure Chill’s ‘direct drive’ solar refrigerator solves the problems inherent with conventional solar powered cooling. Our system doesn’t need batteries to store energy from solar panels. And it maintains its optimum temperature even on cloudy days. To see just how well it worked, the system was put to the test in two parts of Vietnam with very challenging weather conditions.

10 months of perfect cooling in every climate

Sure Chill’s solar powered refrigerators were tested in two different parts of Vietnam – cloudy Phu Tho in the north and the humid Mekong Delta in the south.

The refrigerators were first tested using a substitute load and in conditions that reflected typical cold chain conditions. This meant keeping the refrigerator door open for long periods to recreate typical immunisation days. Happy with the outcome of these tests the health workers then switched to the real vaccine and the real immunisation routine.

In the 10 months that followed, Sure Chill’s refrigerators maintained a constant internal temperature of 4 to 5°C. Through incredible heat in the south of Vietnam, through low sunshine during winter months in the north, through days where the refrigerators were exposed to extreme conditions, they cooled perfectly throughout.

With perfect, reliable, low-cost solar-powered cooling like this, the cold chain is safe with Sure Chill.