At present, many international airports and ground handlers around the world employ transportation dollies that are diesel-powered, and which are fitted with energy-intensive cooling units that are expensive to operate and often do not meet all performance requirements. As a result of the close collaboration between Masdar Institute and Etihad Cargo, an innovative, so-called cool dolly has been specifically designed to optimise the transportation of temperature-sensitive cargo, which includes pharmaceuticals, livestock and perishable products that need to be transferred between the aircraft and the relevant storage areas within the cargo warehouse.
The new hybrid cool dolly design incorporates thermoelectric module technologies, modified compressor units and a custom-made power bank that can be linked up to solar panels for sustainable recharging, ensuring that the temperature can be regulated to meet the needs of temperature-sensitive cargo, while minimising power consumption.
