Dulas demonstrates power of solar refrigerator in South Sudan

Dulas recently organised a live interactive event in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, to showcase the importance of Solar Direct Drive refrigerators to store essential vaccines in areas of the country that do not have access to a reliable source of power.

The successful event brought together various partners from UN agencies, donor agencies and healthcare providers from within the country and was carried out in conjunction with their in-country partners, Sinco Medical Supplies Ltd.

There was a demonstration VC150SDD combined solar refrigerator / freezer on display and a live Q&A session with Catherine McLennan, Head of International Sales, who joined the event via video link from Dulas HQ in mid-Wales. A range of speakers underlined the challenges of a reliable cold chain infrastructure and the need to ensure a system is in place to protect life-saving vaccines.

A highlight of the event was the donation of the VC150SDD to the Ministry of Health. Dr Baba Samson, Director General of Health Strengthening Programmes, attended the event and identified a local children’s hospital (the Alsaba Children’s Hospital) as a beneficiary of the donation from Dulas.

Power of the solar refrigerator
South Sudan has many regions that lack reliable electricity - this is a huge challenge when delivering vaccines that need to be chilled to remain viable. The country is currently gearing up for mass vaccination against Covid-19, and having a reliable cold chain infrastructure is vital for any vaccination programme. In areas where power supply is intermittent, solar powered refrigerators form an essential part of medical care facilities. The Dulas Solar Direct Drive refrigerators are ideal because they run at a stable +5°C year round and have Grade A User independent Freeze Protection (UIFP) which prevents vaccines from freezing.

Essential healthcare infrastructure
Catherine, who led the showcase, said: “whilst Covid-19 is an immediate concern right now, with proper care, our refrigerators will form an essential part of the healthcare infrastructure within rural communities in the future, enabling the implementation of routine immunisation programmes for generations to come.”

Early pioneers of solar refrigerators
Dulas pioneered off-grid solar vaccine storage in the 80s and has been supplying solar schemes and refrigeration to areas that need it most ever since. Today Dulas works with in-country partners all over the world, manufacturing and distributing this life-saving equipment and providing the relevant training to healthcare workers in remote areas.

Dulas Ltd
Unit 1 Dyfi Eco Park
Machynlleth
Powys, SY20 8AX

Dulas Ltd is a British company with almost 40 years’ experience manufacturing WHO-approved solar powered refrigerators for use in remote clinics and health centres around the world with little or no access to grid electricity. Our engineers pioneered this technology in the 1980s and we are now one of the world’s leading suppliers of vaccine cold chain equipment. Our mission is to help ensure that vaccines are accessible to all children and adults, no matter how remote their locations.
Dulas is the only UK-based manufacturer of WHO Performance Quality Standard vaccine refrigerators. We hold a Long-Term Agreement with UNICEF for the supply of our solar refrigerator systems to support their immunisation projects worldwide, as well as supplying directly to other charities and NGOs with whom we have built excellent relationships over the years.

This release was published on openPR.