For the process industry

Smart fridge
for a chemical plant

At a chemical plant, nobody eats where they work. The units run around the clock and the control room is never unstaffed. During a planned shutdown, hundreds of contractors who do not know the site suddenly arrive. A production line with a shared break is a different story, covered on the manufacturing page. This page is about the process industry.

Around the clock Outside the process units During shutdowns too

Check your site Manufacturing

The situation

A site that
never stops

A chemical site runs in shifts all year, nights included. The canteen is there for the day shift, and the other shifts eat what they bring from home. Where the gap is per shift is covered in smart fridge for manufacturing sites, and what works at night in meals for the night shift.

During a shutdown or turnaround the picture changes completely. For a few weeks, outside crews who do not know the site work different hours and fall outside the canteen arrangements. What they need is covered in food for agency workers and contractors.

Around the clock Control room Shutdown

What a chemical site typically lacks

Food for the late and night shifts
Food for contractors during a shutdown
A place to eat outside the zones
Something for the control room without a long detour
Halal, kosher, vegetarian and vegan for multinational crews
A canteen open at weekends

Normal week and shutdown

The same cabinet
in two modes

Period	Who is on site	What it has to handle
Normal operation	Own shifts and the control room	Something at any hour, also at night and at weekends
Planned shutdown or turnaround	Many outside crews on top	More volume, open access without a badge
After the shutdown	Back to normal headcount	Restocking back to the normal rhythm
Location	Everyone	Outside the process units and safety zones, on the route to changing rooms or the control building

Put the dates of a shutdown into the plan and whoever restocks can build them in. How several cabinets are spread over a large site is covered in smart fridge for a large company.

When it pays off

Does this sound
like your site?

You operate around the clock
The canteen only runs during the day
Regular shutdowns with contractors
Eating is only allowed outside the zones
Out through the gate and back takes longer than a break
A hundred or more people on site every day
Demand for halal, kosher, vegetarian or vegan among the crews
There is only a snack machine

A cabinet pays for itself faster the more of these apply. With two or fewer, we would rather suggest a smaller set-up.

In practice

From site visit
to a working cabinet

Shifts and shutdowns

The shift roster and the planned shutdowns for the coming year.

Location with your safety team

Outside the zones, on the route to changing rooms or the control building.

Access for restocking

Which entrance, which induction, at what time of day.

Follow the volume

Normal weeks by consumption, shutdowns planned in advance.

What goes in

Hearty food
for every shift

For the break there are meals to heat up, for later in the night something small, plus water and drinks. Contractors doing heavy physical work during a shutdown get high-protein portions on top. Halal, kosher, vegetarian and vegan are part of the standard range; what halal means in the cabinet is covered in halal vending.

A lot depends on the location. It sits outside the process units and still close enough to the changing rooms or the control building. What else a spot needs is covered in technical requirements.

Frequently asked questions

About a cabinet
at a chemical site

Can the cabinet stand in a hazardous area?

No. The cabinet goes outside the process units and safety zones, in a place where eating is allowed. Your safety team designates that spot, and its framework applies.

Can we get extra stock during a shutdown?

Yes. Tell whoever restocks in advance when the shutdown falls and how many extra people will come. For those weeks, quantities go up and restocking is more frequent; afterwards everything returns to the normal schedule.

How does restocking get onto a site with a safety induction?

At the site visit, agree the entrance, the induction the person restocking follows and whether they are escorted. Restocking itself happens at a fixed time agreed with your site.

Can contractors buy without a badge?

Yes. A contractor pays at the cabinet by bank card or via the app, so during a shutdown your reception does not need to set up access for those hundreds of people.

Is there food in the control room?

Nothing goes in the control room itself. The cabinet goes as close as your rules allow, in the control building or the corridor leading to it, so an operator who cannot leave their post for long only has a few steps to take.

What do your contractors eat during the shutdown?

Eight short questions about your shift roster and the next shutdown. You hear from us which spot outside the zones works best.

Free site check See the options

Takes about 90 seconds · no obligation · no contact details until the last step

Smart fridgefor a chemical plant

A site thatnever stops

The same cabinetin two modes

Does this soundlike your site?

From site visitto a working cabinet