Throwback Thursday: Keeping Coke Cold Without Electricity? Engineering at Its Coolest

The summer heat is on across the U.S.A. There’s something cooling and oh-so American about cracking open an icy and sugary soda. For this Throwback Thursday, we look to how those without electricity can keep this refreshment…well, refreshing.

If summer means one thing, it’s scalding your hands on the steering wheel every time you get in your car. And if summer means two things, it means that and enjoying a nice cold drink while relaxing in the sun.

But what about people in remote parts of the world who don’t have access to electricity and the cold-drink-providing qualities that come with it? Are they doomed to never enjoy a frosty drink during their scorching summer months? Not if the Coca-Cola people have anything to say about it.

Coca-Cola, purveyor of bottled and canned happiness, has a solution. You can read all of the nerdy details on FastCo, but the quick version goes something like this: A “fridge” is covered in wet plants whose water evaporates and cools a chamber, and solar power is then used to turn gas into a cooling liquid. The result is a cool and refreshing Coke (and the nice sugar high that follows), all without using electricity.

We know what you’re thinking: “How do they come up with this?” Well actually, this technique, or at least one similar to it, dates back thousands of years, and more importantly, you don’t have to know how it works. We’ve got people to figure that part out – you can just sit back and enjoy your soda.

The engineers in our Innovation Lab are constantly popping and fizzing with wild new ideas. And they can make amazing things happen in everything from cold chain management to sustainable design and weight reduction: Just look at a few of our Success Stories.

If you’ve been around us, read our blog regularly or have watched our videos, you may have heard us say, “We’re an engineering company that happens to work in packaging.” That’s our calling card around here because we love good engineering. Packaging is a product, engineering is a solution, and that’s where we shine. Contact us about how our cooling systems can help your business shine as well.