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Demand for the vaccine fridges has increased as Covid-19 continues to ravage communities across the globe and countries ramp-up their vaccination efforts.

With the a new expansion officially unveiled today (February 24), manufacturing partners Polestar Cooling and Dulas will be able to double production, sending solar-powered vaccine fridges to developing communities all over the world.

The fridges are designed to function off the grid, making it possible to vaccinate difficult-to-reach and isolated communities that might otherwise go without. Among the countries who have received the fridges so far are Ethiopia, India and Pakistan, with orders currently being filled for Yemen.

Managing Director Ruth Chapman with Minister Mike Freer

Attending the grand opening was Mike Freer, Government Minister for Exports at the Department for International Trade, who called the refrigerators 'truly transformational'.

"We are so good at so many things," he said. "Whether it's making high performance sports cars, super yachts or renewable energy.

"But (the refrigerators) are not just something we can sell, but it's something that has a major impact on people's lives. And not many exporters can say that. When you have a piece of kit that can literally transform the ability of some parts of the world to have access to vaccines or medicines post-covid, it's truly transformational."

The manufacturing plant, in Beeding Close, Bognor Regis, is the only site in the world producing the refrigerators. Dulas managing director Ruth Chapman said that gives our town something to be proud of.

"We're extremely proud. It's not just Phil (Polack, non executive director of Polestar Cooling) that's local. Everyone who works at the factory is local. And it was great that Minister Freer recognised the actual impact that our product makes. It's not just about a product, it's what that product does in a country."

The growth of Dulas could also mean more jobs for local people, giving the Bognor Regis site an even bigger part to play in the fight against infection.

"We scale up and down depending on production needs. If we can achieve higher production to meet global demand then it definitely will result in more local employment, not just on the factory side, but on the Research and Development side of things as well, which is really where we want to invest more, the managing director said.

That growth could also be set to continue. Although vaccination rates are high in the UK, developing countries like India and Nigeria are in much greater need of the Bognor-made fridges.

"Less than 4% of people in low income countries have had at least one vaccine dose, compared to over 70% in high income countries, so a Herculean international effort is required to close this gap this year, as part of this, cold chain equipment like ours will be vital to deliver vaccines safely and securely to the most remote communities in the world," Ruth said.

"But, obviously, aside from Covid, we've actually been producing these fridges for forty years. They help with routine immunisation programmes for children and all those programmes will continue past Covid. Covid will just be one new vaccine to add to all the others which happen globally."

Production of 'transformative' vaccine refrigerators set to double after expansion of Bognor Regis site