Hultsteins & Masterveil Europe: Empowering Cold Chain Efficiency with Advanced Air Curtains

Hultsteins, the Swedish and British diesel-free transport refrigeration solutions manufacturer has become the UK partner for Masterveil. Masterveil are air curtain innovators who design and manufacture custom air curtain solutions. Hultsteins will provide sales and service support within the UK market on behalf of Masterveil Europe.

Masterveil was founded during the late 1980’s on a commitment to the “Art of Invisible Doors,” they have since established themselves as a premier European specialist in high-performance air curtain technology. With a legacy spanning over 35 years, the company has evolved from a niche provider into an international leader in climate separation for the most demanding environments.

The history of Masterveil is defined by a shift away from traditional heated air fans toward precision engineering. Their innovations utilize a “knife jet” nozzle design to create a high-pressure, low-volume air barrier that is significantly more energy-efficient than standard models.

In refrigerated rigid truck operations, by combining the Hultsteins hydraulic Ecofridge with a LamiFlow (Airstop®) air curtain, operators can save further on cost and carbon. Ecofridge is powered via a power take off from the rigid truck engine, eliminating the need for a secondary diesel fridge engine. This drastically cuts harmful emissions as well as slashing diesel costs by removing the secondary diesel fridge engine.

The air curtain keeps 60%-80% more cold air within the body than having no air curtain fitted, meaning that less energy is required from the truck engine to maintain set chilled or frozen temperatures.

For cold store operations, Masterveil prominently offer two main types of air curtain technology: Airstop® and Powerstream®.

Airstop® air curtain units utilise knife-jet nozzles to create a Laminar air flow which creates temperature separation using a smaller area of pressurised air instead of wider large volumes of air. They are best suited to be used in chilled cold stores and are available in multiple different models. Airstop® units have been 3^rd party verified to be up to 70% efficient compared to no air curtain protection. The units are custom built to suit each operation.

Powerstream® air curtain units are best suited to be used within frozen cold stores. These units, composed of two vertical modules mounted on either side of the doorway, feature an additional insulation layer so only this layer requires conditioning, maximizing energy efficiency. They can also be placed each side of the doorway to create an airlock and increase efficiency up to 80%.

Graham Usher, Managing Director of Hultsteins UK, comments:

 ‘I’m chuffed to partner with Masterveil. This is an outstanding product that will reduce cost and carbon for UK chilled and frozen operators.’

Peter Deweerdt, Managing Director of Masterveil Europe, comments:
‘We’re proud to bring our cost-saving and energy-efficient solutions to the UK market. A collaboration with Hultsteins, a like-minded partner in this sector, was a natural step. As specialists in chilled and frozen logistics, we understand the industry’s challenges and remain committed to delivering innovative, sustainable solutions.’

This partnership brings together two companies who are committed to helping cold chain operators drive sustainability, reduce energy loss and cut costs.