Bespoke Chiller Cold Room for Flower Storage
Walk-In Chiller Cold Room at Q Flowers Ltd
When it comes to chiller cold rooms, most people associate them with food and drink storage and prolonging the life of food products. But did you know chiller cold rooms can also be used to store flowers?
Q Flowers ltd, based in Coventry, have been in the flower industry for over 14 years – so they understand the importance of providing their customers with the freshest flowers. Q Flowers is a family run business offering next day delivery for fresh flowers across the UK to a range of customers, from flowershops to event companies and garden centres.
Bert de Mooij, the owner at Q Flowers, contacted MTCSS Contracts with a requirement for a new chiller cold room to replace their existing chilled flower storage – a refrigerated trailer unit. With flowers arriving from all over the world Q Flowers needed to ensure they had the best, most effective cold storage solution for their business.
MTCSS Contracts were able to offer that solution. After a site survey to understand Bert’s requirements, the MTCSS Contracts team designed the perfect walk-in chiller to enhance Q Flowers day to day processes. Customers can place orders up to 10pm for next day delivery Monday to Saturday, with the Q Flowers team working from 3am to ensure their customers receive the freshest flowers possible.
By choosing a walk in chiller cold room to replace the refrigerated trailer, it not only improved the processes and storage of flowers, but also meant that visiting customers could walk around the cold room to view the produce more easily.
The L-shaped chiller cold room was built from 100mm insulated panel, to fit within the existing unit to maximise the space available. As Q Flowers needed to wheel tall trolleys of flowers in and out of cold rooms, MTCSS Contracts installed a chiller high speed door to allow for easy access. High speed doors close automatically after a specific period of time – meaning that internal temperatures are consistently maintained and there is minimised risk of doors being left open.
MTCSS Contracts provided a full turnkey solution for the project, including the refrigeration systems. Due to the L-shape of the walk in chiller, the cold room needed two evaporators to ensure the 5 degree temperature was effectively maintained throughout. The two evaporators gave the client a level of contingency if there was a unit failure, with each unit sized to a 55% of the total room duty. The units were also selected based on Bert at Q Flowers wanting low noise evaporators.
Q Flowers can now store their stunning range of flowers more easily and effectively, with the cold room helping with flower preservation due to the improved air flow, ventilation and 5 degree temperature. Not only are the business processes improved, but Bert’s running costs have reduced by 50%!
Project Specifications
• External dimensions: 9400mm L x 7000mm W x 3100mm H • Panel Thickness: 100mm PUR panel
• 1no 2000mm x 2400mm high speed door
• 2no split refrigeration systems with R449A
• RDM DM Touch PR05XX Data Management panel
• 6no Chill LED lights
Find out how MTCSS Contracts can help your flower business – improving your storage space, reducing your energy costs, preserving your products and more – by getting in touch with our team! Call us on 01886 833381, email us at sales@mtcss.flywheelsites.com or fill in an enquiry form here!
Bert De Mooij, Bespoke Chiller Cold Room for Q Flowers Ltd 2021
From coming into contact with MTCSS to the finished product, has been a great and easy process.
The members of the team listened to our wishes and offered us exactly what we needed. From picking the type of cooler machines, the doors, the lights - everything was exactly adjusted to our wishes.
Even though through the COVID period where availability of materials were challenging, the cold room was finished on the date as was planned when signing for the order.
Very professional company from start to finish.
Catherine Hester Fenwick, Ambient storage at Brabourne Wines 2021
‘Brabourne Wine is a small, family run vineyard in Kent. In an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a Conservation Area and with listed buildings, we needed to find a solution to store our wine without building afresh or making any material differences to the current buildings. MTCSS were amazingly flexible. They worked with us to develop a solution that fitted inside one of our outbuildings. Given the limitations on space and the requirement to have racking suitable for pallets, virtually everything about the project had to be bespoke but Darren never lost patience with the endless queries in the planning phase. Once on site, the team was professional, friendly, flexible and quick. They have delivered a solution which is perfect for our needs and exceeds our expectations. We are at the smaller end of their usual customer base, but we were never made to feel as though we were any less important than a major supermarket chain. We would certainly recommend them to anybody needing a controlled climate for storage (or any other reason)’
Chris Rudd, Frank Rudd & Sons
" From the initial enquiry to project completion, the team at MTCSS were both prompt and professional - delivering exactly to our requirements. " Chris Rudd, Frank Rudd & Sons Office Installation
Cold Room Refurbishment at Steve’s Family Butchers
Steves Family Butchers now has a fantastic refurbished cold room, which actually looks like a whole new cold room thanks to MTcss cold storage solutions. We found they responded in a very quick and helpful manner which meant that they communicated well with us and kept us informed well. The refurbishment was completed to a very high standard in a professional manner. We are exceptionally pleased with the service that we received.
Dual Compartment Cold Room Installation, London
From the beginning I found Gem’s customer service fantastic, out of all of the companies we spoke to for quotes she was the most responsive and attentive. Even when we were still finalising and it wasn’t confirmed if we were proceeding with MTCSS yet, she was always great with keeping in contact to see if we needed anything, and very responsive with emails, and also phone calls.
Andy and Nathan, have been great throughout the entire process. Both have been on hand for any queries we have had and very responsive again to all forms of communication. Everything has been handled promptly and efficiently both before, during and after the build. Any questions we have had they have always gotten back to us with an answer very quickly.
The gentlemen who completed the install here on site, where very friendly and mindful of business operations while completing work. Each day they would check in with who was here in the morning to explain what they would be doing, what access they required, and asked if and how this might affect our operations or customers. Again, they were very clear and open with communication and was happy to help find solutions when we had issues with the shelving.
Overall our experience with you has been very good and we have been left a happy customer. I would also just like to say a thank you to yourself Gem, Nathan and Andy as you have all been very great throughout our customer journey!