🧊 Ridgewood Infrastructure acquires Valley Cold

Welcome back to CubeCold News where we cover the latest developments in the cold chain industry and temperature-controlled logistics.

In today’s edition:

• Ridgewood Infrastructure announces acquisition of Valley Cold

• Americold's fully automated Russellville facility recognized as the Winner of the 2024 Built By The Best Award

• Pharma.Aero validates Hong Kong-Miami pharma corridor

• Ryp Labs crowned the winner of Lineage’s 2024 Global Food Chain Innovation Challenge

• MIT and Mecalux launch a groundbreaking project to accelerate logistics innovation

News

Ridgewood Infrastructure announces acquisition of Valley Cold Ridgewood Infrastructure, a US-based investment firm specializing in essential infrastructure, has acquired Valley Cold Storage & Transportation, a leading provider of temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics solutions.

• Valley Cold Storage serves critical supply chains across the Southwestern United States for food, agriculture, retail, and pharmaceutical industries.

• Ross Posner, Managing Partner at Ridgewood Infrastructure, highlighted the strategic importance of this acquisition, stating that Valley Cold's operations are "something special" and expressing enthusiasm about helping the company achieve its growth potential.

• Clay Bush, CEO and founder of Valley Cold Storage, expressed excitement about the partnership, emphasizing Ridgewood's expertise in infrastructure and long-term growth focus as key factors for future expansion.

• This acquisition positions Valley Cold to capitalize on industry growth trends and expand its operations into new markets while enhancing its existing services. (link)

Americold's fully automated Russellville facility recognized as the Winner of the 2024 Built By The Best Award Americold Realty Trust's Russellville, Arkansas facility has won the 2024 Built By The Best Award from the Controlled Environment Building Association (CEBA), recognizing excellence in controlled environment construction.

• The facility was also named Site of the Year by a major customer for its successful launch and operations.

• Built in partnership with Stellar, the 136,000 sq ft, 140 ft tall cold storage facility features state-of-the-art automation, including an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS), truck unloading system, and advanced ammonia refrigeration.

• The expansion added 42,000 pallet positions and 13 million cubic feet of space to the existing location.

• The facility incorporates sustainable features, achieving a 25% reduction in water usage, and includes modern amenities like a new breakroom, offices, and conference room.

• According to CEO George Chappelle, the facility showcases Americold's commitment to innovation and customer service in supporting North America's leading food companies. (link)

Pharma.Aero validates Hong Kong-Miami pharma corridor Pharma.Aero has successfully validated the Hong Kong-Miami pharmaceutical corridor through its Corridor 3.0 Project, achieving 100% success with no temperature excursions.

• The project, involving Hong Kong International Airport, Miami International Airport, and Cathay Cargo, validates the quality and reliability of end-to-end pharmaceutical transport between these locations.

• Cathay Cargo operates eight weekly 747 freighter flights on this route, utilizing Ultra Track technology and IATA CEIV Pharma standards.

• The validation process follows a standardized protocol developed through earlier projects, including the Brussels-Hong Kong corridor (2020) and Brussels-Miami route (2021).

• Hong Kong International Airport notably holds the complete suite of CEIV certifications for handling various high-value goods, including pharmaceuticals, perishables, live animals, and lithium batteries. (link)

Ryp Labs crowned the winner of Lineage’s 2024 Global Food Chain Innovation Challenge Lineage, Inc. has announced Ryp Labs as the winner of its 2024 Food Chain Innovation Challenge, awarding them $50,000 and entry into a six-month executive-led incubator program.

• Ryp Labs, which won the San Francisco regional event, impressed with their StixFresh solution - a natural formulation that mimics plant defense mechanisms to slow fruit spoilage, applicable to food-safe labels and stickers.

• The global finals on December 2 featured three regional winners, including London's winner Mimica with their "Bump" technology that indicates food freshness through texture changes, and Amsterdam's winner Barbara Šoštarić with a visual indicator for food shelf life.

• The challenge, aimed at students and young entrepreneurs worldwide, sought innovative solutions for improving food supply chain efficiency and sustainability.

• Ryp Labs CEO Moody Soliman expressed excitement about scaling their impact through Lineage's global network and utilizing the resources provided to advance their food waste reduction mission. (link)

MIT and Mecalux launch a groundbreaking project to accelerate logistics innovation MIT's Center for Transportation & Logistics (MIT CTL) and Mecalux have launched a five-year collaboration to advance AI integration in logistics through MIT's Intelligent Logistics Systems Lab. The project focuses on two main research areas in its first year.

• The first area aims to enhance autonomous warehouse robot productivity by developing "swarm intelligence" systems that enable robots to operate collectively and make unified decisions.

• Dr. Matthias Winkenbach, Director of Research at MIT CTL, explains they want robots to learn from human behavior to improve warehouse collaboration.

• The second research focus involves training self-learning AI models to understand demand patterns and predict customer purchasing habits. The goal is to help companies with large distribution networks optimize order fulfillment in real-time.

• According to Mecalux CEO Javier Carrillo, the partnership combines Mecalux's warehousing expertise with MIT's research capabilities to transform logistics operations for greater efficiency.

• The project aims to reduce costs, lower carbon footprints, and improve customer service quality. (link)

Other headlines

BFFF seeks new logistics partner to handle storage and distribution of frozen food entries for its 2025 awards program, following Cook's departure from the role.

Nippon Express USA's Philadelphia Branch warehouse has received GDP certification for pharmaceutical storage and distribution.

Blue Cube has launched a 'Fast Blast' service delivering blast freezers to businesses within two weeks, with one record installation completed in just four days.

Reed Boardall reports increased profits and near-full utilization of its expanded 168,000-pallet cold storage facility in Yorkshire.

Europastry has earned a second Lean & Green star after achieving a 30% reduction in CO2 emissions through various sustainability initiatives.

Greenyard Frozen UK has deployed its first solar-powered Sunswap refrigeration trailer for frozen vegetable transport.

That’s it for today!

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