Refrigerated container checklist: size, power and operating brief

Define the load and the temperature task

State the product, packaging, quantity, target temperature range and required monitoring. Include the temperature at which goods arrive, how often doors open and whether stock is loaded gradually or in one large batch. The same nominal setpoint can represent very different operating duties.

A container specified to hold already chilled or frozen stock is not automatically suitable for rapidly chilling or freezing warm goods. Ask the supplier to validate any cooling duty and follow the operating instructions for that unit and product.

For a food business, apply the Food Standards Code and the relevant enforcement arrangements. Notify the appropriate agency before food handling starts and before relevant changes. Potentially hazardous food generally needs 5 °C or below or 60 °C or above, unless a safe alternative is demonstrated. Food intended to be stored frozen must remain frozen; there is no single Code set point for every frozen product. Define sanitation, product monitoring and corrective action for the actual operation.

For medicines, use the approved product storage conditions and the applicable state or territory licensing and quality requirements. The TGA wholesaling code covers Schedule 2, 3, 4 and 8 medicine wholesalers, including relevant third-party logistics arrangements, through jurisdictional controls. Have the responsible quality professional establish qualification, monitoring and excursion procedures. A reefer range does not prove suitability or approve wholesaling.

• Goods, packaging, typical and maximum stock quantity, and arrival temperature.
• Required operating range and acceptable product-specific limits.
• Door-opening pattern, staff access and daily loading routine.
• Expected ambient conditions, indoor or outdoor location, and rental duration.

Find the appropriate Australian food enforcement agency →TGA: good wholesaling practice for medicines →

Check the door, loading limit and airflow

Refrigerated containers lose usable space to insulated walls and machinery. A dry-container drawing is not a reliable loading plan. Ask for the quoted model’s internal dimensions, clear door opening, permitted loading height, floor limits and access layout.

For scale, Hapag-Lloyd publishes a 20ft reefer fleet example with an interior of 5,450 × 2,280 × 2,159 mm, and a door opening of 2,290 × 2,264 mm. These measurements describe that fleet example, not every 20ft refrigerated container. Obtain the allocated unit’s specification, including the usable loading envelope and the loaded height of your pallet or cart.

Goods and packaging must allow the unit’s designed air circulation. Keep the marked load limits and the supplier’s required clearances clear; physical ceiling height is not necessarily usable loading height. A geometrical pallet fit does not prove adequate airflow, floor capacity or safe handling.

Hapag-Lloyd: 20ft reefer fleet example →

Confirm the electrical supply before delivery

Supply requirements vary by refrigeration model and installation. Obtain the actual nameplate and connection schedule before reserving equipment. A three-phase reefer cannot be assumed to operate from a standard household power point, and a transformer or generator option needs its own compatible specification. A quoted voltage or advertised current is not a wiring design. Have the supplier identify startup requirements and all supplied cables or accessories.

Have the supplier and a licensed electrical contractor check voltage, frequency, phase, current, protection, connectors and isolation against the actual Australian site supply. Check equipment approval and installation requirements with the local electrical regulator. Agree connection, commissioning and inspection responsibilities; a foreign certification mark is not proof of acceptance.

• Exact model and electrical connection specification.
• Available site supply and the distance to the proposed container position.
• Responsibility for connection, commissioning and any required site work.
• A practical response to a power failure, including any suitable backup arrangement.

ERAC: electrical regulators and licensing →

Ask for energy evidence under comparable conditions

Power in kilowatts (kW) describes the rate of electrical use at a point in time. Energy in kilowatt-hours (kWh) describes consumption over a period. Multiplying a nameplate rating by 24 does not establish typical daily consumption: operation changes with ambient temperature, setpoint, load, door openings and the equipment.

Ask for measured or documented consumption with its test conditions. Once installed, an appropriate meter reading at the start and end of a representative period can show consumption for that period. Record operating conditions alongside it; a quiet empty day is not evidence for a busy fully loaded week.

For a single confirmed electricity rate, multiply measured kWh by Australian dollar rate per kWh; 25 cents is A$0.25. Time-of-use tariffs and demand charges need their own billing inputs. Add the applicable supply charges and use a consistent GST basis. A kWh estimate cannot predict peak-demand charges or quote another site’s bill.

Energy Made Easy: understanding energy bills →

Compare quotes with a complete cold-storage duty

Capacity alone can hide a mismatch. An offer with shelving and frequent staff access may solve a different problem from dense pallet storage. Identify the clear route needed for people or handling equipment, the maximum load, and the stock that must remain accessible. Ask the supplier to validate its layout against the unit’s airflow and permitted loading.

For example, a hypothetical brief might ask for chilled packaged ingredients arriving at their specified storage temperature, daily deliveries, several door openings each hour during a shift and a weekend with few visits. A second brief might require reducing the temperature of a large newly delivered batch. Do not use one price or energy observation for both without having the supplier assess the different duty.

Request a written schedule dividing supplier work and site work: transport, unloading, supports, connection, commissioning, controls, monitoring, cleaning, service and pickup. A phrase such as 'ready to use' does not allocate each responsibility. Confirm when rental starts, any minimum term and whether setup days are billable.

Check refrigerant work and business authorisations separately

For work risking release of regulated refrigerant, check the individual’s Refrigerant Handling Licence and permitted work, including any applicable exception. Acquiring, possessing or disposing of bulk regulated refrigerant needs the appropriate trading or other authorisation. Refrigerant contained in refrigeration equipment is excluded from the bulk definition, so ordinary hire of a sealed unit does not itself require a trading authorisation.

Hydrocarbons are outside this Commonwealth handling-licence scheme, but local trade, electrical, WHS or OHS and fire controls remain. Queensland, for example, has a gas-work licensing pathway for hydrocarbon refrigerants. Recovery of regulated fluorocarbon refrigerant still needs the appropriate licence. If importing a reefer, establish any equipment-import licence or restriction as well as DAFF biosecurity conditions before shipping.

Check refrigerant servicing requirements →

Agree the handover and breakdown response

Confirm the site position, ground requirements, unloading method and service access with the supplier. Before staff enter, verify a safe means of opening the door from inside and exiting, lighting, communication and emergency arrangements. Assess cold exposure, slips, refrigerant leaks and any atmosphere affected by the load or work. Shipping containers can be confined spaces depending on their configuration and hazards; have a competent person assess the applicable workplace rules before entry. An ordinary cargo door is not evidence of a safe walk-in cold store.

Ask who commissions the unit and trains staff in loading, cleaning, alarms and emergency release. Have a competent person assess exits, entrapment and emergency arrangements under the applicable NCC and state or territory workplace rules. Test the agreed release and alarm functions with the supplier during acceptance.

A telephone line advertised as available 24/7 does not necessarily promise a particular repair time or compensation for lost stock. Ask for response terms, maintenance responsibilities, alarm routing and the action to take if temperature moves outside the agreed limits. Establish who can move the goods and where they can go.

Safe Work Australia: model codes — check local approval →

Send the same operating brief to each supplier

Include the product and duty, required capacity, model or minimum clear dimensions, postcode, dates, available power and access constraints. Request itemised rental or purchase, delivery, unloading, pickup where applicable, installation and monitoring or service charges. Confirm the GST basis and exclusions.

Keep the number of containers separate from the number of pallets you store. If the supplier proposes a different size or modular cold room, request a revised layout and electrical specification before comparing the offer.

Compare refrigerated-container suppliers and options →