Anthony Transparent LCD Glass Doors with Video & Animation

Anthony, a manufacturer of commercial glass refrigerator and freezer doors, announced it will debut first-ever Transparent LCD Refrigerated Glass Doors at the 2011 NACS (National Association of Convenience Stores) tradeshow at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL.

Anthony debuted this innovative new product  with a 5 door display of Transparent LCD Refrigerated Glass Doors.

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New Kodiak Glass Doors for Beer Caves

Over the last several years the trend in the convenience store industry has been to add “beer caves” to the retail area.

This environment has proven to increase bulk beer sales by over 300% in some studies. These types of success stories have convinced some store owners to offer bulk product in temperatures at or below 35 degrees.

The result of this success in sales has increased customer traffic in the cold rooms and therefore caused an increased performance demand on conventional style “walk-in entry doors”.

SCHOTT Gemtron has been evaluating this environment and determined that the best solution is a walk-in entry door that can hold up to this demanding retail area.

Tim Dye, Director of Sales and Marketing announced today that SCHOTT Gemtron has introduced the Kodiak® line of commercial refrigerator doors. “This innovative design will offer the store owner a product that will withstand the high volume usage that beer caves generate”. He continued by stating “our engineering team has studied the harsh environment and developed a product that will withstand the demanding conditions”.

Standard features include a hydraulic door closure with door stop, lock, push bar, and 2-3/4” door rail. The Kodiak is available as a 36” wide door with either a single or double configuration. Customers can specify an energy free design or a heated glass option for high humidity locations. Both black and silver satin finishes are available.

One feature that will set Kodiak apart from all other walk-in entry doors is the locking mechanism. The lock itself is industrial-grade and is used on both the single or double door design. When the double entry door is installed the right hand door has “thumb lifts” that when engaged inserts a rod upward into the frame and another one down into the rod receiver. This design assures that the doors are locked and secured at 3 points instead of the traditional one location. Dye also stated “SCHOTT Gemtron continues to lead the commercial refrigeration industry in innovation. While listening to our customer base and the industry the new Kodiak Heavy Duty Walk-In entry door will redefine the standards for beer caves”.

Kodiak® Doors Feature:

• Industrial-Grade Components
• Designed for Harshest Environments
• 5 Year Warranty

For more information contact SCHOTT Gemtron at 800-326-2717 , email sales@gemtrondoors.com or view the Kodiak Glass Door Brochure

Cutting Down On Cooler Costs

Whether your chain is gearing up for LEED certification or just hoping to save on the electric bill, instituting an energy management solution can pinpoint energy waste.

Energy reduction remains an ongoing quest for convenience store operators as they look for ways to cut costs in an effort to improve their bottom lines.

Building stores to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards and seeking LEED certification is something more chains are pursuing, including Kum & Go, Kwik Trip and Quick Chek, which just opened its first LEED-certified store last month in Bayonne, N.J.

LEED is an internationally operated program encompassing the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings established by the U.S. Green Building Council and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). It provides third-party verification that a building was designed and built by implementing strategies aimed at improving performance in areas such as: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts. Read the rest of this entry »

NACS 2010 C-Store Tradeshow

Think Custom. Think Cooler.

U.S. Cooler manufactures standard and custom designed walk-in coolers and freezers.
We understand the importance of producing high-quality, durable, and efficient products. All of our walk-ins are produced using the highest quality products and the most efficient insulation available. U.S. Cooler’s unique progressive manufacturing process allows us to design and build custom walk-in coolers and freezers in the most efficient automated fashion.  This automation provides our customers with custom designed, quality built, walk-ins with no extra cost increase or production times.  U.S. Cooler has the technology and capability to manufacture walk-ins to fit any size or configuration you require. When you need quality and customization, think U.S. Cooler. Come visit our booth, # 8225, at NACS in Atlanta from October 6-8, 2010.

New! Brew Cave Takes Beer Storage to New Level

U.S. Cooler unveils its new “Brew Cave” high efficiency cooler package to small commercial and residential customers. With the new unit’s lower price, higher efficiency, and several color choices, the new commercial grade walk-in will be of great interest to small bar/club and residential users. Unlike the usual beer cave found in Convenience Stores, U.S. Cooler has made the new “Brew Cave” to fit in a small space and still offer tons of storage for beer, soda or any cold beverage at a very competitive price. This convenient high efficiency package includes everything necessary for a walk-in beverage cooler; refrigeration, shelving and draft beer dispensing system.

The Brew Cave is now available in one standard model size, 6’10” x 4’10” x 7’6”. The small size lends itself to the ability of fitting in most basements, garages, bars or clubs. The Brew Cave can store over 30 cases of beer and 6 or more kegs, all while keeping them cold and ready to enjoy. Read the rest of this entry »

SCHOTT-Gemtron Announces CrossFire LED Lighting at T-8 Pricing

Tim Dye, Director of Sales and Marketing of SCHOTT Gemtron announced today that Tundra™, Sierra™, and Polar™ door models will be offered with CrossFire™ LED lighting at standard T-8 pricing. Dye stated, “SCHOTT Gemtron continues to lead the industry by being the first glass door manufacturer to provide LED technology at this price level.” Dye continued by stating, “LED lighting has been a solution for our customers for the last 5 years, and now we are making it even more affordable.”

CrossFire™ LED lighting has proven to be the solution for the harsh cold environments of the commercial refrigeration industry. This lighting is the perfect application for Super Markets, Convenience Stores, Buying Clubs, Drug Stores, and any other retailer that utilizes glass display doors in their merchandising endeavors.

Dye also stated, “With this major price reduction all retailers can utilize this technology and feel confident that they are maximizing their sales efforts.” Read the rest of this entry »

Retrofitting LED Lights Can Pay Off In Your C-store

As a convenience store owner, if there was a change you could make to increase merchandise sales, lower your electric bill, reduce maintenance costs, and be environmentally responsible would you make the change? The opportunity to do just that is here with the advent of LED Retrofit Kits. These kits replace the existent fluorescent lighting on your glass door merchandising walk-in cooler and freezer with 4’, 5’ or 6’ long LED light strips.

LED lighting provides a 68 to 85% energy savings over the fluorescent lights typically used in coolers and freezers. LED’s use only 15 watts for a 5’ model and 18 watts for 6’. They also produce less heat than a fluorescent light, which will lessen the load on your refrigeration system. But if energy savings was the only advantage, adoption of LED’s wouldn’t be near where it is today. The real difference is the attractive quality of the light it gives off. LED’s give your products a beckoning glow and more uniform illumination than fluorescent.  You can choose between lights that give off a neutral or slight red or blue hue. Conventional wisdom suggests that the more appealing the product presentation, the more likely a customer is to take notice and purchase it. Read the rest of this entry »

Lighting Efficiency of Incandescent & CFL vs LED

LED life-cycle assessment

Light Emitting Diodes are among the most energy-efficient light sources available on the market. LED lamps are already today more than five times more efficient than incandescent lamps and future technical achievements offer additional potential for the coming years.

At present, artificial lighting accounts for around 19% of global electricity consumption – that corresponds to 2.4% of worldwide primary energy consumption. Read the rest of this entry »

Think Custom. Think Cooler. NACS 2009

U.S. Cooler manufactures walk-ins with the customer in mind. We understand it is important to produce an affordable, quality, durable, and efficient product. U.S. Cooler specializes in custom sized walk-in coolers and freezers. All of our walk-ins are produced using the highest quality products and the most efficient insulation. Our custom walk-ins are competitively priced and have the shortest lead time in the industry.  U.S. Cooler has the technology and the capability to manufacture walk-ins to fit any size or configuration you are looking for. When you need custom, think U.S. Cooler. Come visit our booth, # 1863, at NACS in Las Vegas from October 21-23, 2009.

Walk-in Saves Lives

On Wednesday, August 19th, a tornado ripped through the village of Williamsville, IL leaving parts of the town a disaster with many home’s lost. One particular building that was in the direct path of the storm was a Casey’s General Store. When the storm rolled in, there were 9 employees and customers in the store. The entire front wall of the building was blown out leaving no shelter for the group in the store. Immediately they took cover in the walk-in cooler where they safely remained until the storm ended. After the storm, the only structure of the building still intact and left unharmed was the walk-in combination unit. Check with your local emergency center for the emergency plan that best fits your location.

Taken right after the tornado hit Casey's General Store in Williamsville, IL.

After the store clean-up.

Additional pictures of the damage. Read the rest of this entry »