Godrej Appliances to launch ultra-cool freezers in India for COVID-19 vaccine storage

Consumer durables firm Godrej Appliances is readying a range of medical refrigerators to help store the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine. These refrigerators help store vaccine vials that require extremely cold temperatures.

In an interaction with Moneycontrol, Kamal Nandi, Business Head and Executive Vice President, Godrej Appliances said the brand has received multiple orders valued close to Rs 150 crore from the central government, various state governments and international aid bodies, solely for the purpose of Covid-19 vaccine storage.

“We have received an order of Rs 95 crore for 9,000 medical refrigerators (with storage temperature of 2-8°C) and 3,000 chest freezers (with storage temperature of -25°C) from the health ministry, the government of India. There is another 3,000 units order for medical refrigerators from UNICEF India,” he added.

Nandi said, in January 2021, the company will be launching a vertical freezer with a storage temperature of -70°C which will be an ultra-cool freezer.

The Pfizer vaccine for COVID-19 needs to be stored at -70°C while the Moderna vaccine needs a temperature of -20°C (though it can be kept in the refrigerator at +2°C to +8°C for up to a month).  The AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine needs a storage temperature of +2°C to +8°C.

Godrej Appliances which initially had a yearly production capacity of 10,000 units for this product has now ramped it up to 36,000 units per annum due to the rising demand.

Jaishankar Natarajan, Associate Vice President and Head - New Business Development, Godrej Appliances said, many state governments are also in the process of finalising orders.

“Pickup is happening in states and many PSUs are also ready to buy our medical refrigerators from us for their health facilities. States like Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya and Rajasthan have already come out with their tenders and we are hoping that several others will bring out tenders from January onwards,” he added.

What does a vaccine refrigerator do?

The medical refrigerators used for storing vaccine help keep the vials (small glass container holding vaccine doses) at an optimum temperature so that it is effective for disease control.

In areas where there is regular fluctuation in electricity, solar power is used. Jaishankar Natarajan, Associate Vice President and Head - New Business Development, Godrej Appliances explained that they have on-grid refrigerators for areas with regular power supply and off-grid refrigerators that run on solar power for areas without proper power supply.

Godrej Medical Refrigerator

Typically, a 225-litre medical refrigerator can store 40,000-60,000 vials. Natarajan said their on-grid version costs between Rs 60,000 and Rs 2 lakh, whereas the off-grid (solar-powered) refrigerators cost between Rs 2.5 lakh and 6 lakh.

If there is a power cut, these refrigerators can store the vaccine without any damage up to 10 days. This facility ensures the vials’ efficacy doesn’t get damaged due to the absence of power.

Voltage fluctuations could also impact the efficacy of the vaccine and hence, it is critical that medical refrigerators also operate at low voltages. When it comes to Godrej Appliances, Nandi explained, their medical refrigerators operate at a low startup voltage of even 130 V which could make it extra suited for deployment all over the country.