Solid-state cooling technology company Phononic recently introduced its Actively-Cooled Tote (ACT) 2000, which provides cooling and freezing for cold chain fulfillment. The first ACT debuted in September 2021 and is now installed in more than 20 commercial installations. As a sustainable solution for grocery’s end-to-end cold chain fulfillment needs, the ACT 2000 features a proprietary thermoelectric-based cooling platform that eliminates refrigerants and HFCs while meeting demanding refrigerated and frozen cold chain needs.

“Grocers are facing a costly challenge to improve their fulfillment capabilities, particularly for perishable and frozen items, while achieving profitability, requiring a reexamination of the grocery fulfillment process,” said Larry Yang, chief product officer of Phononic. “Currently, the approach for retailers in on-site grocery fulfillment is costly, losing $13 per $100 order. The ACT 2000 helps close this gap by being flexible and scalable and delivering a proven ROI on cold chain operations and ensuring critical food safety and quality — ultimately enabling retailers to meet the demands of e-grocery fulfillment.”

Available in both refrigerator and freezer versions for retail and automation environments, the ACT 2000 includes accessories, IoT data connectivity, and turnkey installation. Its updated features include a lightweight and ergonomically friendly design for ease of handling and 33% more storage capacity than its predecessor for larger food items and multiple orders. Its aluminum shell has enhanced durability and recyclability; its lid has bidirectional opening for packing flexibility; and its user-friendly display shows cooling status and IoT connectivity. 

The ACT 2000 will include a family of Tote accessories: mobile-powered carts for optimized picking, staging, and curbside pickup; vertically powered storage racks to minimize storage footprint; and integration into robotics automation.

At the end of 2022, the EPA issued a regulatory proposal for the phasedown of HFCs that are used in typical compressor-based grocer refrigeration. The ACT 2000 provides grocers and retailers an opportunity to meet these reduction proposals while also meeting internal sustainability and profitability goals.

For more information on the ACT 2000 solution, visit: https://phononic.com/solid-state-products/cold-chain-fulfillment/gen-2-tote/.