According to a credible research report, it is estimated that an investment of approx. ₹ 16,000-21,000 crore is set to be poured in into the cold storage sector between 2019 and 2023 with the intent to optimise the post-harvest value chain and to serve the food processing industry.
The demand for cold storage solutions skyrocketed pertaining to the evolution of our lifestyles and heightened demand for processed and packaged food. Cold storage solution providers across the globe are now channelling their expertise towards catering to this ever-increasing demand.
One prominent name among those companies is Kool Solutions India Pvt. Ltd.
Kool Solutions was conceived from a joint venture between Samsara Capital and Spire Group. The two companies perceived India as an emerging market for a state-of-the-art and fully compliant cold store facility.
Kool Solutions comprehends that emerging India has high emphasis on compliance of rules and regulations in construction industry. The company also sees that as Indian customers become more global in nature, they are and will continue to demand an asset which protects their brand by ensuring cargo protection.
At present, the company has a 10,600 pallet position state-of-the-art, fully operational asset in Taloja near Mumbai. It has also installed one of the most advanced warehouse management systems (WMS) software that provides access to its customers to view in real time all history and pending transactions for their inventory in the facility. Additionally, twenty-five percent of the electricity is provided by a rooftop solar system that allows the company to enhance its green footprint.
Pertaining to these aspects, Kool Solutions has gained a strong reputation among its clientele. Commenting on the same, Capt. Anand Aryamane, the CEO says, “We have seen very encouraging response from customers, and we are excited to build more such assets and create a network across all metros in India. We also have a very credible investor group which are well poised to move forward with our expansion plans.”
Offering only the best
Kool’s warehousing solutions cover the complete spectrum of frozen, chilled and blast freezing capabilities with temperatures ranging from -25°C to +20°C. The product segments Kool caters to are dairy, ice-cream, poultry and meat, seafood, fruits and vegetables, confectionaries, pulp, and concentrates, QSRs, ready-to-eat/ready-to-cook food products, healthcare and pharmaceutical products, industrial products, etc.
Kool Solutions have a blast freezing system known as QFR (Quick Freezing Racking) which is the most advanced and is the first of its kind in India, capable of blasting 90MT a day. The QFR system of blast freezing is a new technology that uses in-room refrigeration equipment to freeze the product more uniformly and faster than the existing traditional blast freezing methods.
Kool Solutions also offers primary and secondary transportation to customers through its channel partners and assists in managing the distribution network from factory to end customer. The company is a 100% compliant cold store with all rules and regulations related to building codes and safety norms which in turn has a far-reaching effect on insurability of valuable products that are stored.
The company is British Retail Consortium (BRC) Certified (Grade A), Understanding Responsible Sourcing Audit (URSA) Certified and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approved cold store operator. The facility is also supported by Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MOFPI). This makes Kool a premier cold store operator in the market.
Kool Solutions also brings similar standards of compliance as in USA and Western world. “In the current landscape, it is extremely critical for cold storage operators to monitor available inventory in their value chains. Providing visibility across the supply chain provides customers with a better transparency – this is what Kool Solutions has delivered since the inception,” says Capt. Aryamane.
Kool Solutions’ cutting edge Warehouse Management System ensures accurate inventory management and error-free operations. It offers a barcode-based inventory system with on-line customer access to the inventory and stock management at all the times.
The company also operates an off-site redundant backup system in Toronto, Canada which is capable of storing two years of data on every product handled and stored at its warehouse in Taloja. This allows the retrieval of any data for a particular product in case of product recall through its advanced WMS system.
Overcoming adversities
Talking about the potential challenges in the cold storage business, Capt. Aryamane says, “Managing a food supply chain has inherent challenges that require all players in the supply chain to adhere to stringent operational practices in order to ensure the product is safe for consumption once it reaches the end consumer.”
Following are the major challenges of cold chain structure as per Capt. Aryamane:
- High capital and operating expenditure: Maintaining the required controlled conditions in terms of temperature, humidity, air flow etc. necessitates investment in appropriate refrigeration and insulation equipment which makes the cold chain business capital intensive. Continuous operation of the cold store / refrigeration unit to avoid thermal shock also leads to high power consumption making profitability sensitive to power costs. As most of compressor units, reach trucks are imported, the capex is high resulting in high operating cost.
- Demand seasonality: especially in the case of fruit and vegetables, dairy & seafood, makes the cold chain business susceptible to seasonal variations. However, catering to commodities with complementary seasonality helps avoid fluctuation in utilizations.
- Uneven Distribution: Available capacity is mostly focused on single commodities. Problem of financial viability is also their due to seasonality.
- Technical nature: Provision of quality and reliable cold chain services necessarily requires an understanding of the specific requirements of perishables.
- Human Capital and Domain Skills: It requires skilled human resources for operating and controlling the cold storage facilities. The training needs high quality and at regular intervals.
- Last mile distribution: It is here that temperature-sensitive materials are at their most vulnerable point. This requires the formation of a comprehensive logistical process that preserves a shipment’s integrity from product preparation to the final verification of a shipment’s integrity at the delivery point.
Commenting upon the challenges levied by the COVID-19 pandemic, Capt. Aryamane says, “When the news about the pandemic took a centre stage, Kool Solutions swung into action immediately.”
Since February 2020, Kool Solutions has proactively followed procedures and guidelines set by the Centre for Disease Control (CDC), with intention of caring for its staff and community as well as its customers’ products.
As notified by the Government of India, cold storage warehousing and transportation came under essential services and hence during the lockdown, Kool Solutions stayed open to ensure the flow of fresh and frozen foods to convenience stores, supermarkets, and grocery stores. Hence, the pandemic did not affect the company much. “However, it did affect our customer’s business which resulted in steady levels of inventory and lesser imports in the first quarter,” says Capt. Aryamane.
He also states that India is slowly opening up and the demand side will pick up soon once the retail markets, malls and restaurants operate fully with free movement of people.
Compared to the first two quarters, Kool Solutions is witnessing good inflow of exports and retail products. With early and proper procedures in place towards protection of its staff, the company ensured uninterrupted services to customers ensuring their commitment is fulfilled to the marketplace even in pandemic times.
“This has been appreciated highly by all our customers and as we see the growth coming in the market, Kool Solutions too will reap benefits through our existing customers and also by adding new customers. We have actually added many new customers during the pandemic times, thanks to our unparalleled services given to the industry,” asserts Capt. Aryamane.
Discovering new horizons
With the Taloja facility now fully functional and with phenomenal responses from customers, Kool Solutions has set foot in one of the most important markets in India, i.e., Mumbai, Maharashtra.
With this asset the company has also established all the standard operating procedures and trained staff available for its expansion. The company will continue to create quality assets across all Tier I and Tier II cities in India, offering best-in-class solutions and brand protection to customers. “This growth will be a combination of an organic and inorganic approach. Acquisition of cold stores are very much a strategy Kool Solutions has. Needless to mention, such assets will then be brought to our standards with an injection of capital and expertise,” concludes Capt. Aryamane.
