MEDICAL CHILLERS

Certain types of medical products and equipment need to stay at cooler temperatures, and this is where medical chillers come in. When medical equipment runs, it generates a lot of heat, and medical chillers remove this heat so that the machine doesn’t have to shut down to chill off. Medical chillers keep many types of medical equipment cool enough to function appropriately, including: MRI Machines The magnet inside MRI machines has to stay cool in order for the machine to work efficiently. Air and water-cooled medical chillers both work well for MRI machines, but they transfer heat to different areas. Water-cooled chillers transfer heat to a water source such as a plant chilled water system or cooling tower. Air-cooled chillers transfer heat to the surrounding ambient air, and they work well for facilities that don’t have a water source. CT scans CT scanners have an x-ray tube that heats up fast and requires about 10 to 30 minutes of cooling time. This cooling time delays patient care and increases medical costs. Without this cooling time, the machine could operate more efficiently and help more patients. Medical chillers keep CT scanners cool so that they don’t require cooling time. PET scans PET scanners produce three-dimensional images of body processes, and they also generate too much heat. Like CT scanners, they require medical chillers to operate continuously for long periods of time. Oncology Linear Accelerators These machines produce x-rays with electromagnetic waves that accelerate charged particles. Their x-ray tubes generate a great amount of heat, and the tubes require chilled water circulating around them at all times. Types of Medical Chillers Open Loop Chillers Open loop medical chillers continuously circulate a liquid to control its temperature. The liquid moves from a remote open tank through the chiller and then back into the tank. These chillers often use a water source instead of air for cooling. This allows for a reduced size of the chiller and lessened energy requirements because the chiller has no fans and a water-based condenser with a small surface area. Open loop chillers are also less noisy because they don’t have fans. They work well for cooling MRI machines, CT scans, and pharmaceutical processing applications. In-Line Chillers In-line chillers cool passing fluid under pressure with an evaporator inside the chiller. The fluid comes from a remote tank, and a pump is near the tank, which circulates the fluid. These chillers work well for CT scans and other applications that need the pump near the tank. Drop-In Coolers These chillers sit on top of a tank and cool fluid that surrounds an evaporator coil. The stainless steel evaporator coil submerges into the tank, and an agitation pump circulates fluid around the evaporator coil for proper cooling throughout. A controller monitors the fluid’s temperature and controls fluid cycling to maintain it at a certain temperature. Drop-in chillers are ideal for CT scanners. Closed-Loop Coolers These coolers circulate coolant from a tank that sits inside the cooler. Coolant moves through a sealed coolant loop and spindle before returning to the tank. The coolant dissipates heat in an evaporator before going back to the tank. A temperature controller senses the coolant’s temperature and controls the evaporator to keep coolant at a desired temperature. Closed-loop coolers are ideal for PET scans, x-ray machines, and linear accelerators. At J.C. Younger Company, we rent out medical chillers to many types of facilities. We’re an ETL Listed & Inspected Manufacturer in the USA, and we’ve been a family owned business since 1956. To find out more about our medical chillers, please contact us. We offer single-month and long-term rentals of medical chillers.

The Increased Utilization of Medical Chillers The demand for medical chillers has grown significantly over the years. This growth is partially attributed to the expansion of the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) market over the past decade. Medical procedures that were once only undertaken in large hospitals are increasingly being performed in ASCs. As the medical equipment required for these procedures has expanded in scope, the need for medical chillers has risen. When evaluating medical chiller suppliers, procurement staff should seek providers that are experienced, licensed and committed to providing a high quality of product and service. The Evolution of the Medical Chiller Industry In the past, medical chillers were primarily used in large hospitals. However, the expansion of the surgery center market and the increasing sophistication of research facilities have led to the expansion of the types of medical facilities that use chillers. Medical chillers are now being used in the following types of health-related facilities: Hospitals Medical centers Ambulatory surgery centers Universities Research facilities Veterinary hospitals The enhanced scope of medical equipment has spurred some hospitals and large healthcare facilities to procure multiple medical chillers. Facility expansions and the acquisition of new highly specialized medical devices are key contributors to the rising demand for medical chillers. And with a limited number of experienced suppliers in the medical chiller arena, it is more important than ever for procurement staff to enlist the help of a trusted medical chiller provider. Key Advantages of Renting a Medical Chiller In many cases, medical chillers are procured without giving sufficient consideration to factors such as size or intended scope of use. In other cases, a medical facility may experience rapid growth and find that it has quickly outgrown their current medical chiller. The rental of a medical chiller provides a cost-effective solution to these potential concerns. Additionally, there are a number of other advantages that are offered with the rental of medical chillers: Servicing and repairs are covered in the price In many cases, rental costs can be written off during tax preparation Ability to quickly and affordably upgrade to a larger model No charge for normal wear and tear Reduced worry for your biomedical maintenance staff Best of all, renting a medical chiller makes sense for organizations that only require a chiller for a limited time period. After all, very few medical organizations can afford to purchase an expensive, customized item that will only be used for one or two applications. In these instances, it is advantageous to seek a company that specializes in the rental of medical chillers. The Importance of Industry Experience When evaluating medical chiller providers, there are three key factors that should be considered. These factors are industry experience, industry approvals or licenses, and a company’s commitment to quality. Procurement staff should seek a provider that is fully insured and ETL-UL listed. They should ask for references and request photos of current inventory to confirm a company’s capabilities. Finally, a company with decades of industry experience is able to offer expertise and product quality that fly-by-night companies are unable to match. Choosing the Best Medical Chiller Provider With nearly 50 years of experience in the chiller industry, J.C. Younger (JCY) has established itself as an industry leader. Fully insured and possessing a One Master refrigeration license, JCY is an ETL-UL 1995 listed manufacturer. Their commitment to offering a high quality of product and service is evidenced by their use of high grade components and inspection procedures. JCY’s extensive chiller inventory is housed within a 40,000 square foot facility. Please contact us today to learn how we can quickly and affordably meet your medical chiller needs. We look forward to hearing from you!

The Food and Drug Administration approved a record 45 new drugs in 2015, the most the agency has cleared for the market since 1996. But overlooked in the sheer number of drug approvals is the kinds of drugs that are getting the regulatory nod. The FDA also approved the first biosimilar, Zarxio, which is a copy the Amgen’s biological drug Neupogen. Drugs made from biological products need to be stored at cool and constant temperatures – even if they are administered to patients at room temperature. Zarxio’s approval opens the door for other biosimilar products to likewise seek the regulatory nod to enter the market. As more biological and biosimilar drugs enter the market, hospitals, pharmacies, and other health care facilities will need to make sure that they have proper medical chillers to store these medicines at the appropriate temperatures. Temperature sensitivity of biological drugs Blood-based therapies, vaccines, and other biological products typically have shorter shelf lives and must be kept within strict temperature ranges; many products that must be kept cold require temperatures between 35 to 46 degrees, according to Inbound Logistics. With a few exceptions, vaccines should never be frozen, cautions the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency’s guidelines state that the ideal temperature for vaccine storage is 40 degrees Fahrenheit. As a precaution, the CDC suggests twice-a-day temperature checks of medical chillers. Some facilities use “dormitory style” refrigerators for temporary storage of medications, an option that runs the risk of either being too cold or not cold enough. It’s not enough to keep vaccines and biological drugs cold. The cool temperature must be constant. Dorm fridges typically have a cooling coil inside an ice maker unit within the fridge, a setup brings severe temperature control and stability issues, according to the Immunization Action Coalition. Consequently, temperatures inside the refrigerator can vary widely, being too cold, bordering on freezing in some places, but not cold enough in other parts of the unit. The risks of improper medical chilling When medications are found to be stored outside of the safe temperature range, the drug’s manufacturer, or the state or local health department may need to be consulted to determine whether the product can still be used. If the manufacturer or health officials deem the temperatures unsafe, the product must be discarded – an expensive but necessary step to ensure patient safety. The best way to ensure that vaccines and other biological drugs are kept at safe temperatures is to use chilling equipment designed specifically for medication storage. Medical chillers are available for purchase, but buying this equipment represents a hefty investment. Inventory levels of medications can rise and fall.  A pharmacy or medical clinic may need some time to assess the medical demand and the inventory needs of their site. Leasing a chilling unit can provide health care professionals more flexibility to make that determination. Your medical chiller options Renting a chilling unit gives a health care facility the chance to make sure that it’s not adding more chilling capacity than it needs. If the patient levels increase, and demand for vaccines and other biological products likewise rises, a leasing arrangement gives health care providers the flexibility to move up to a bigger medical chiller accordingly. At J.C. Younger, we bring chilling expertise to our customers. In addition to serving the food and plastics industry, we have a long history of supplying chilling equipment to medical professionals. That means that we know how to work with medical customers to assess, and then address, their medication chilling requirements. Biological drugs are taking up a greater share of the medication market. Make sure that your facility has the capacity for them. Please contact us for help with your medical chilling needs.