The constant temperature equipment manufacturer LAUDA is launching a new product on the market to start the new year: the Mobifreeze M 270, the first mobile battery-powered ultra low-temperature chest freezer. Valuable samples or APIs can be safely stored and transported from -86 °C to -50 °C with high temperature resistance – without dry ice. Natural refrigerants are used to provide active temperature control instead.

Safe storage AND transport of valuable samples

The actively temperature-controlled, mobile ultra-low-temperature chest freezer with sophisticated insulation technology has a battery life of four hours and therefore enables the cold chain to be reliably maintained in intralogistics and for inter-factory transport in road logistics. Delicate and temperature-sensitive substances such as gene therapy medicinal products, monoclonal antibodies or vaccines, which require storage under validated conditions, can now be transported under identical conditions. Cooling is freely adjustable between -86 °C and -50 °C. If the set limits are exceeded, a warning is provided by an acoustic and visual signal. An integrated data logger stores the temperature and alarm data. In addition to this, a customer-specific monitoring system can be installed. The Good Distribution Practice (GDP) Guidelines for pharmaceutical products can therefore be complied with to the full extent. Furthermore, the Mobifreeze can be used as a hybrid system with flexible switching between battery and mains operation, stationary use for storage, or mobile use for transport. Transfer processes that pose a risk of damage and contamination to the samples are avoided, which means that the overall logistics are more product-friendly.

Safe, comfortable handling, cost savings, and environmentally friendly operation

Battery operation also means that dry ice, which is a hazardous material, and phase-change materials (PCM for short) can be dispensed with during transport. In particular, dispensing with the former eliminates significant health risks for employees. At the same time, expensive exhaust air systems and specific personal protective equipment are no longer required. Together with the elimination of the PCMs and dry ice as a consumable, this represents a significant cost saving. Natural, future-proof refrigerants are used in the refrigeration unit of the Mobifreeze. The ultra-low temperature chest freezer therefore eliminates health risks, offers flexibility, and cuts operating costs.

The freezer is operated via a 4.3" touch screen, whose functionality is also not restricted by gloves. Password-protected user management prevents unauthorized access to

configuration parameters. The mobile ultra-low temperature chest freezer is equipped with two rotating heavy-duty casters, which make movement and steering easy in spite of the volume of 270 l. The ergonomic handles provide a secure grip and the dead man's brake offers extra safety. In addition to this, the bottom panel and wheels are safeguarded by ram and impact protection. The stable design enables it to be loaded with a forklift truck.

This transport innovation for the biopharmaceutical industry is now available. LAUDA, the temperature control specialist, demonstrates once again that it acts upon its claim “Empowering Excellence. For a better Future” and re-thinks established methods.

In December 2023, Andreas Aiblinger, Head of DACH Sales and Service at LAUDA DR. R. WOBSER GMBH & CO. KG, presented long-standing partner and customer Fritz Bartelt, Managing Director of Bartelt GmbH with the important international award for "Long-time agency with continuous increase in sales during the last five years". The first meeting between the two companies took place at Analytica 1986, where Dr. Gerhard Wobser, the long-standing Managing Director of the global market leader for precision temperature equipment had his first conversation with Fritz Bartelt senior, marking the beginning of a long and fruitful collaborative partnership. Today, a wide selection of the LAUDA products are sold, ranging from laboratory equipment to complex process thermostats from the Integral line as well as systems and corresponding service. Bartelt had already received three awards from LAUDA in the past. President & CEO Dr. Gunther Wobser and Managing Director Dr. Ralf Hermann, who is responsible for Sales, Marketing and Service, would also like to warmly congratulate him and look forward to many more decades of excellent collaboration.

With headquarters in Graz and other locations in Vienna and Innsbruck as well as a partner company in Budapest, Bartelt GmbH is one of Austria's leading companies in the areas of laboratory equipment, laboratory consumables and laboratory facilities. The company was founded in 1936 as a family business and is now run by Fritz Bartelt from the third generation.

The temperature control specialist LAUDA recently announced that it had won another major order from a well-known European producer of hydrogen filling stations. 36 sets, each consisting of an SUK process cooling unit and a circulation chiller from the Ultracool product line, will be supplied over a period of just under two years. The SUK unit is responsible for cooling the hydrogen before the refueling process, whereas the Ultracool circulation chiller cools the compressors which compress the hydrogen.

Delivery of 20 of these sets will be requested in the current year alone. LAUDA had regularly supplied the filling station producer with single systems from 2020, but then an aggregated order for 14 sets was placed in 2021 for the first time. With a volume of several million euro, the new contract is now the biggest hydrogen order in the history of LAUDA.

There is potential for a large number of further orders, because the market for hydrogen filling stations is growing. According to a study of the Ludwig Bölkow Foundation, the number of hydrogen filling stations will increase to approx. 3,000 by 2030, starting from approx. 1,000 in 2020.

In addition to the production of the currently ordered systems, LAUDA is also working on the next generation of process cooling units. On the one hand, this is being done in the European research project RHeaDHy, which started in February this year and focuses on the development of technology for the refueling of heavy goods vehicles. On the other hand, LAUDA engages in intensive discussion with its customers, in order to drive forward the development in line with the current requirements. Furthermore, in addition to the SUK compact systems currently in use, LAUDA is also planning modular systems that will allow flexible adaptation to both current and evolving requirements. This concept enables refueling station operators to gradually expand their capacity depending on the demand of the end customers, which also means that capital investments can be better distributed over time. As the major order shows, LAUDA is spot-on with its customer focus – the maxim "Empowering Excellence. For a better Future" and the corresponding product quality are convincing.