History

In 1991 Ton Thomasse was approached by Rendac (formerly Cebeson), a large rendering firm in the South Netherlands, to develop a carcass refrigeration system. Rendac was at the time focussing on the optimization of the quality of the product to be processed. They saw the cooling of carcasses, both by Rendac themselves and by the suppliers (cattle farms), as crucially important. An added advantage of such a refrigerated storage system was the improved image of Rendec and the whole agricultural sector, as unwanted odours would be reduced and company hygiene improved.

In collaboration with NCB (Association of Pig Farmers) and Rendac, among others, a test was carried out with 65 farmers in 1992. These tests were successfully completed and the Euratainer (the first model was called Cooltainer) was born. The Euratainer has been sold in the Netherlands through Cebeco, Cehave and Boerenbond LLTB since 1993. 

Coolworks has continued to grow since 1993. The Euratainer has been further developed and improved over the years. Important principles for this growth were, and still are, durability, energy consumption, quality, service, user and environmental friendliness. It is with good reason that the Euratainer was declared best product in two independent tests (DLG Fokus test and Practical Research Cattle Farm in Sterksel). The Euratainer scored highly in the areas of temperature, energy consumption, ergonomics, stability and reliability.

PDF DLG Fokus Test (German)
PDF Practical Research Cattle Farm Sterksel (English)

It is thanks to the fact that Coolworks BV has in-house refrigeration expertise that the Euratainer has developed to – for the moment – the highest possible technical standards. We were the first to use propane as a cooling agent (revolutionary at the time) and are currently the only producer offering a cooler with specially constructed stainless steel humidifier that significantly extends the lifespan of the Euratainer. Even the outer casing has undergone a makeover. The cover of the first Euratainer was soon replaced with a more practical flap, and a variety of larger models also became available. For the export market we came up with the ‘dismantled’ Euratainer, that customers could then assemble on location. After a number of tests we decided to abandon this idea. We could not guarantee the good insulation and installation of the product due to the separate parts. Propane refrigeration was a first step towards an environmentally friendly policy (for which we received support from Greenpeace, as propane is completely CFC-free). But it didn’t stop there. Today we are proud that every component of our refrigeration unit is recyclable.

Coolworks BV has supplied more than 9000 Euratainers in the Netherlands since 1993. Sales increased enormously after the introduction of the new destruction law, which stated that carcasses up to 40 kg must be transported to the destructor under cooled conditions. Coolworks BV has already sold more than 4000 Euratainers outside the Netherlands in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Spain and France. In Denmark a similar process occurred as in the Netherlands. The largest destructor company in Denmark (DAKA) also recognised the need for refrigeration and made it compulsory for their partners to deliver cooled carcasses.

The Euratainer has proven to be popular not only with cattle farmers. More and more councils (for small carcasses such as dogs, cats, birds etc.), refuse processing companies (Van Gansewinkel), hospitals and hospices (foodstuffs), supermarkets and of course the catering industry all make use of our Euratainer to guarantee high hygiene standards in their company.

Euratainers have even been spotted at parties, to keep crates of beer cool…