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Milk production needed ice to proceed

When a large dairy's cooling system broke down, Aggreko provided an 800-kW chiller that maintained ice water at a precise 1°C, ensuring milk remained at the optimal temperature. This solution enabled round-the-clock milk production, preventing spoilage and ensuring production schedules were met.

Sectors: Food and Beverage

The Challenge

Keeping milk at optimum temperature

When the chiller plant at a large dairy broke down, it could have resulted in thousands of litres of spoiled milk, a loss of production and revenue. As the site’s process cooling system used ice water, we needed to find a way to keep this at a steady 1oC, to maintain the milk’s temperature between 3-4oC. Too warm and the milk would spoil – too cold and the water would freeze.

Project Fact File

800 kW chiller 1
Constant temperature range +/- 0,3 °C
Round the clock milk production 24/7

The Solution

Ice water at a stable 1°C for round the clock milk production

We came up with a plan to link into the site’s water cooling process using a heat exchanger. This accepted the ice water from one side, and we attached a three-way valve to the other. This then linked into our 800kW chiller, which delivered water at a constant set point of 1⁰C.

We installed a sensitive temperature gauge to the three-way valve to monitor the water temperature leaving the heat exchanger. The valve opened and closed to cool and heat the water as its temperature rose and fell – keeping it between +/-0.3⁰C of 1⁰C.

"We found a way to deliver ice water at 1⁰C across the entire site, allowing the dairy to keep production running 24/7"

Food & Beverage Specialist , Worldwide

Aggreko Technical Engineer

Precise dairy cooling keeps milk in top condition

The whole dairy site was supported with a robust cooling package until the failed chiller could be replaced.

As a result it was able to maintain milk production round the clock, 24/7 and was able to meet its production schedules.