Camfridge joins European consortium on energy efficiency

Cambridge University spin-out Camfridge, a specialist in gas-free cooling technology, is partnering with the Turkish white goods manufacturer Arçelik and others, in a Framework Programme 7 consortium examining energy efficiency from farm to plate.

The objective of the multi-million euro FRISBEE (Food Refrigeration Innovations for Safety, consumers’ Benefit, Environmental impact and Energy optimisation along the cold chain in Europe) project is to provide new tools and concepts to improve refrigeration technologies along the food chain. The project will develop new mathematical modelling tools that combine food quality and safety together with energy, environmental and economic aspects, to predict and control food quality and safety in the cold chain.

Arçelik is one of the largest fridge manufacturers in Europe, retailing under the Beko brand name. Refrigerators in Europe are graded by energy efficiency, with a new class of efficiency, labelled A+++, due to be introduced by 2011.

Current refrigerators maintain cool temperatures by incorporating gas compressors, which are heavy, noisy and harmful for the environment. Camfridge has developed a high efficiency gas-free cooling technique using magnetic refrigeration, which promises up to a 50 per cent reduction in energy consumption, elimination of gas and ease of recycling.

“This is a great opportunity for us to connect to users of refrigerant technology across the entire food chain; this project will allow us to considerably expand our partner network increasing awareness and uptake of our technology into new business areas,” commented Neil Wilson, Camfridge’s CEO.

The FRISBEE project involves 26 partner organisations from 12 countries and will run for four years.