Hello chalo-ga,
Thank you for an interesting question.
There are several options for you regarding use of gel ice packs for
shipping:
1. You can purchase pre-packaged gel ice with specifications that meet
your own needs.
2. You can buy "off the shelf" bulk gel concentrate, and mix/package
your own gel packs.
3. You can have gel ice materials custom-formulated to meet your
needs, and then sold to you in bulk or in packages ready for use.
I have found companies that can meet your needs in all three of these
areas.
------------------
Cold Ice, Inc.
1-800-525-4435
This company bills themselves as "The Industry Standard for Gel Ice
and Insulated Shipping Containers". Their web site is at:
http://www.coldice.com/
Here is how they could meet your needs in any of the three categories
I outlined above:
-----
1. They sell four types of pre-packaged gel ice:
Cold Ice - Premium, reusable, leak-proof, semi-solid, food-grade,
non-toxic, biodegradable refrigerants.
EverCold Gel - Standard, low cost, non-toxic, semi-liquid refrigerant
for one-way and high volume shipping.
EverCold Foam -Rigid foam refrigerant. Uniformly shaped to give a
tight consistent fit for square and rectangular shipping containers.
EverCold Ice Blanket
Their site contains additional information on each of these product
categories.
-----
2. They sell gel ice concentrate that you can use to mix your own gel
ice for packaging. You can see information on this here:
http://www.coldice.com/gel_concentrates.html
Gel Concentrates
EverCold P400 Gel Concentrate - Course grind gel concentrate, used in
vertical form / fill / seal systems.
EverCold P600 Gel Concentrate - used in EverCold gel packs.
The site is rather sparing on actual information here, however. If
you find you need more information from ColdIce on this option, let me
know, and I'll be glad to contact them for additional details.
-----
3. As their homepage notes:
"If you need a refrigerant designed with a specific freeze point,
custom size or weight, Cold Ice, Inc's custom development service will
help design exactly the right coolant for your shipping needs."
If you have need for a specialty gel ice that can't be met by
off-the-shelf options, they will work with you to formulate exactly
the material needed.
===========================
Another company with a similar spectrum of offerings is:
TEMTRO CO.
PO BOX 2066
Alpharetta, GA 30023
Voice Mail (770) 475-3247
Phone: 678-867-0461
FAX: 775-255-0517
E-mail temtro@no-odor.com
Their web site is at:
http://www.no-odor.com/freezeze/index.html
-----
1. Their pre-packaged gel ice packs can be seen here:
http://www.no-odor.com/freezeze/econo_pack.htm
FREEZEZE Econo Dry Gel Ice Pack
and here:
http://www.no-odor.com/freezeze/prodpack.htm
TEMTRO Gel Ice Pack
and here:
http://www.no-odor.com/freezeze/therma_pack.htm
THERMAPACK Gel Ice Pack
A full list of all products can be seen here:
http://www.no-odor.com/freezeze/products.htm
-----
2. They offer "dry gel" concentrate here:
http://www.no-odor.com/freezeze/prodgel.htm
(they also offer the opportunity to "profit over 3,800%" by mixing
your own gel...)
About 3,200 gel packs can be made from a single 40 pound container of
TEMTRO Dry Gel
A single 40 lbs. container is listed at $399.00
In addition to the concentrate itself, they also offer an extensive
list of products related to packaging ones own gel ice packs,
including a Gel Ice Maker Machine, Heat Sealer, Bags, and other
materials. Prices are given on the site for most of these items.
-----
3. They do a certain amount of customization, although from the
information on their site, they seem to mostly offer services in
customized packaging (different sizes, shapes or printed information
on bags); they may offer customized formulations of gel ice as well,
but this is not clear from the site.
Again, if this is an option of interest to you, I would be happy to
contact the company to find out more details.
====================
One of the most well-known names in the business is "Blue Ice", made
by Pelton Shepherd Industries. Their site is at:
http://www.peltonshepherd.com/
1-800-BLUEICE
As their site notes:
Pelton Shepherd Industries has been in the gel business for nearly 50
years. As the creators of Blue Ice? and the oldest manufacturer of gel
ice in the country, we are continually improving our quality assurance
and customer service to supply you with the most reliable gel pack
formulations on the market today. Our gel refrigerant products have
been rendered non-toxic and non-caustic. Each formulation has a
slightly different compostion, however, each combination results in
the formulation of a semi-solid gel that has a neutral ph and is
non-toxic...
Our multiple formulas and sizes are designed to accommodate your
needs, for both application to the body and shipping of
perishables.... hand-carved chocolate and flowers, serums and
laboratory test samples as well as seafood and produce.
Audited by major pharmaceutical firms, PSI has implemented the most up
to date quality practices, assuring uniformity in all aspects of gel
manufacturing. From incoming raw material inspection to final weight
and dimension tolerance verifications, you can be assured that the
quality and performance of each gel pack will be consistent.
-----
1. PSI markets a wide variety of pre-made gel packs in three main
product lines:
Johnny Plastic Ice
Ecogel Gel Refrigerant
Glacier Ice Gel Refrigerant
Specifications for each of this can be found at the PSI main site by
clicking on the product name.
-----
2. It's not clear if PSI offers concentrate for mixing your own gel,
but I would be glad to inquire further if you're interested in this
option.
-----
3. The PSI site makes clear that they can fill speciality orders and
special formulation requests:
http://www.peltonshepherd.com/johnny.plastic.ice.info.html
Custom Packs
--We have the ability to manufacture sizes from 3" X 5" to 17" X 20".
--Bags 6 & 8 mil thickness available in special applications.
--Formulation requests are welcome.
--Custom printed bags available.
PSI gel ice refrigerants have a broad use in specialty applications,
whereby our products can be filled into plastic containers and bag
configurations for a multitude of cold, hot or gel support products.
Our flexible capabilities and production efficiency make us the
preferred choice for many specialty product makers.
http://www.peltonshepherd.com/
We welcome any and all inquiries and requests. Pelton Shepherd
Industries has the capability to assist in the design and/or testing
of specialty packs / private labels as well as your specific packaging
configurations. Please call for futher information. 1-800-BLUEICE
====================
Cool-Ease can be found at:
http://www.coolease.com/
Cool-Ease.Com
13212 West 62nd Terrace
Shawnee, Kansas 66216
877-348-6406
info@cool-ease.com
-----
Cool-Ease describes their gel-ice type product at:
http://www.coolease.com/profile.htm
Cool-Ease Refrigerant Pads contain small pockets of a special super
absorbent material. These pockets are quilted between one absorbent
and one non absorbent sheets. To use simply cut the Cool-Ease pad to
the size you want, soak it in water, freeze and place into your
shipping container. Perishables or temperature sensitive shipments
will stay cold for upto three days when properly packaged.
Cool-Ease Refrigerant Pads are part of a family of integrated products
for packaging temperature sensitive and perishable products.
This is a somewhat different technology than typical gel ice packs,
due to the "quilting" technique used by Cool-Ease.
However, the company offers a host of custom-tailored solutions to
individual needs for specialized shipping, and sells in bulk. They
also sell machinery to make your own Cool-Ease packs on site:
http://www.coolease.com/freezer.htm
The Cool-Ease Freeze Refrigerant System hydrates, freezes and cuts
pads for a better way to ship perishables. Cool-Ease Refrigerant Pads
are more flexible and adaptable than ice or gel packs. You control the
output to match your needs.
Ready when you are! Just turn it on and Cool-Ease Refrigerant Pads are
ready for your packaging line. You have a choice to cell sizes, and
Cool-Ease Refrigerant System can cut a range of pad sizes.
====================
Other companies to be aware of:
http://www.thermalsystems.com/polyfoam/refrigerants.html
Thermal Systems
(714) 674-1804
U-TEK Refrigerants
Insul-Ice: Reusable Ice Substitute
U-TEK Refrigerant Gel Packs
Cold Bank Refrigerant Gel Packs
-----
http://www.techpak.com/?source=google&camp=3
Tech Pak Solutions
2 Fifth Street
Peabody, MA 01960
800-TECH PAK
sales@techpak.com
Tech Pak Solutions is a respected company with 35 years of experience
in temperature controlled management for pharmaceutical, biotechnology
and food industries.
-----
http://www.polar-tech.com/fref.htm
Polar Tech Industries, Inc.
415 East Railroad Avenue
Genoa, Illinois 60135
E-mail: info@polar-tech.com
Outside Illinois: 1-800-423-2749
Manufacturers of refrigerant packs, including:
Re-Freez-R-Brix
Re-Freez-R-Wrap
Ice Brix- Standard
Ice Brix- Foil
Ice Brix- Foil - Low Temperature
-----
http://www.coldchaintech.com/refrigerants/
Cold Chain Technologies
29 Everett Road
Holliston, MA 01746
(800) 370-8566
Makers of Koolit Gel Packs and related cooling products.
-----
I hope this provides you with the complete information you need. But
if anything here requires elaboration -- or if you need additional
information -- just let me know by posting a Request for
Clarification, and I will be happy to assist you further.
search strategy:
Google search on:
gel ice
gel ice custom
gel ice concentrate
refrigerant gel custom |
