Star Refrigeration launches The Cold Chain Federation’s Energy Week sharing insights on AI-driven energy optimisation

GLASGOW, United Kingdom, Nov. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Star Refrigeration will sponsor the Cold Chain Federation’s upcoming Energy Week. In an opening webinar titled ‘Energy Monitoring Excellence’ Dr Rob Lamb, Group Sales and Marketing Director at Star Refrigeration, will introduce the latest advancements in Ethos, Star’s AI-driven energy optimisation system, to examine how better data management and energy monitoring of refrigeration systems can support energy and carbon emissions reductions.

The Cold Chain Federation Energy Week 2024 is organised as a series of webinars focusing on different aspects of energy management in the cold chain industry. The event is scheduled to take place from 19th – 21st November 2024.

On 19th November, from 10.00-11:00, Dr Lamb will initiate the session by exploring how Ethos leverages data-led insights to help organisations across the cold chain meet ambitious Net Zero goals while reducing energy costs. Ethos combines the power of artificial intelligence and digital twin technology to deliver precise, actionable insights on system performance in real time.

“We are excited to showcase how Ethos provides cold chain operators with an unparalleled opportunity to harness their refrigeration system data effectively. This approach not only reduces energy costs but also strengthens sustainability strategies across entire estates”, Dr Lamb said. “Ethos represents the future of intelligent energy management in refrigeration, bringing a smarter, more sustainable approach to operational excellence.”

Ethos is a stand-alone, retrofit-friendly solution compatible with a range of cooling and heating equipment, regardless of existing infrastructure. By collecting data through sensors, loggers, and network APIs, Ethos creates a cloud-based ‘digital twin’ – a virtual simulation of optimal refrigeration or heating system performance.

This technology assesses real world performance against ideal parameters, identifying inefficiencies that would otherwise go unnoticed. Results are displayed through an intuitive online dashboard – highlighting CO2 savings, energy trends, and projected efficiency gains.

Ethos is advancing its features and improving user engagement as the platform transitions to its upgraded version, Ethos 2.0. The system’s newest iteration integrates data collection from wireless devices to open up new opportunities for its implementation. Through this innovation, cold chain operators can monitor a more diverse array of components, from refrigeration and heating equipment to doors and lighting, all under one platform.

A more comprehensive energy drill-down feature makes tracking, comparing, and benchmarking energy usage across businesses’ estates simpler. The more advanced multi-level energy analysis allows operators to examine performance metrics down to individual component behaviour and energy consumption patterns.

Ethos’ AI capabilities continuously learn and adapt, enabling cold chain operators to transition from reactive maintenance to predictive, data-driven decisions, sustaining efficiency gains over time.

Ethos’ innovative virtual power metering system offers greater visibility of energy usage by estimating power consumption of individual components without the need for costly physical meters. Using digital signals, the system assesses power consumption by measuring operational time and using kW ratings, allowing for a breakdown of energy usage. This breakthrough feature recently allowed a major UK retailer to quickly diagnose and resolve energy anomalies in a cold store, identifying increased glycol heater usage. Dr. Lamb will share how Ethos tracks energy from an estate level down to individual components.

Additionally, the Ethos data explorer tool has become invaluable in troubleshooting from remote locations,. Data sourced from PLCs and stored securely in the cloud provides maintenance teams and cold chain operators with access to years of historical data allowing them to analyse trends, build heatmaps, and gain deeper insights into system performance.

Ethos processes over 40 billion data points each year, from close to 100 sites, transforming how the cold chain industry assesses and optimises refrigeration plant performance. At this year’s Cold Chain Federation Energy Week, Dr Lamb will share the latest case studies and innovations and explain how Ethos supports industry leaders like Tesco and Asda in achieving up to 10% energy savings across their estate.

Ethos has gained industry recognition, including the ‘Technological Breakthrough -Innovation of the Year’ at the Cold Chain Sustainability Awards 2024. It has also been instrumental in supporting the ENOUGH Project, a European research initiative aimed at reducing emissions in the food supply chain, by providing data and refrigeration expertise to explore heat recovery and innovative uses of heat, directly contributing to the EU’s Farm to Fork Strategy to achieve climate-neutral food production.

Through its continued development and implementation, Star Refrigeration is helping cold chain operators transition toward a more sustainable future while delivering low operational costs.

Cold Chain Energy Week 2024 is set to be an important event for professionals in the cold chain sector, offering valuable insights into energy management, market trends, and regulatory developments. Dr. Lamb’s opening webinar will be followed by Ameresco’s ‘Energy Market Insights session’ on 20th November, introducing a post-Budget analysis of the energy market. On 21st November, the agenda will continue with ‘Climate Change Agreement and Cold Store Benchmarking’, where experts from the Cold Chain Federation and Jacobs will cover the renewed Climate Change Agreement Scheme and introduce new cold store energy benchmarks for 2024.

To learn more about the Cold Chain Federation’s Energy Week 2024 and register for the free webinars, visit https://www.coldchainfederation.org.uk/energy-week-2024/

To learn more about Star Refrigeration’s Ethos optimisation system, visit https://www.star-ref.co.uk/products/controls/ethos-monitoring-recording/

Media Contact

Anna Flanagan, Star Refrigeration Ltd, 01416387916, annaflanagan@star-ref.co.uk, www.star-ref.co.uk

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SOURCE Star Refrigeration Ltd