LEC PPGR273UK Glass Door Pharmacy Fridge

LEC PPGR273UK Pharmacy Control Plus Refrigerator, Glass Door, 273 Litres

The LEC PPGR273UK is a 273 litre freestanding pharmacy refrigerator from the Pharmacy Control Plus range, holding a controlled 2 to 8 degrees C for vaccines and temperature sensitive medicines. It is built in the United Kingdom and sized for a dispensary, a vaccination clinic or a practice holding a full stock rather than a single session's worth.

What separates the Control Plus range from a basic medical fridge is the second probe. Alongside the air temperature, the controller displays a core temperature taken from a probe sitting in a 50 ml silicone filled bottle, which behaves thermally like a vaccine vial. Air temperature reacts the instant a door opens and recovers just as quickly, which is why air-only readings both alarm unnecessarily and mask genuine excursions. The core reading tells staff what the stock actually experienced, and both figures appear on the external display so a reading is taken without opening the door at all.

A glass door is the other defining choice. Stock is checked, counted and audited through the door, which cuts the number of openings and therefore the number of temperature disturbances, and the interior LED lighting makes that practical. The trade-off against a solid door is insulation and light exposure, which matters for photosensitive products and is why both versions of this cabinet exist.

The cabinet carries audible and visual high and low temperature alarms, an open door sensor and alarm, remote alarm contacts for wiring into a building system, a fitted lock with two keys, an antimicrobial handle, forced air cooling for even distribution across the shelves, automatic defrost and R600a refrigerant.

References

Features

• Air and core temperature displayed together, the core reading taken from a probe in a 50 ml silicone filled bottle that behaves like a vaccine vial, so the controller reports what the stock experienced rather than only what the air did.
• External digital controller and display, so a temperature reading is taken without opening the door and without disturbing the cabinet.
• Minimum and maximum recording, which is what a daily temperature check has to record rather than the value at the moment somebody looks.
• Audible and visual high and low temperature alarms, catching a drift before stock is compromised.
• Open door sensor and alarm, covering the failure that otherwise passes unnoticed when a door is left ajar at the end of a clinic.
• Remote alarm contacts, allowing the cabinet to be wired into a building alarm or an out of hours monitoring system.
• Glass door with LED interior lighting, so stock is checked and counted without opening the cabinet, which reduces temperature disturbance across the day.
• Fitted lock with two keys, controlling access to valuable and controlled stock.
• Antimicrobial handle, on the surface every member of staff touches.
• Forced air cooling with automatic defrost, evening out temperature between shelves and removing manual defrost downtime.
• Five polythene coated wire shelves and a basket, with twelve shelf positions, so the interior is configured around the stock actually held.
• Access port for monitoring cables, a 16 mm porthole at the rear, so an independent data logger probe is run into the cabinet without trapping a lead in the door seal.
• R600a refrigerant, a hydrocarbon with low global warming potential, with cyclopentane blown insulation.

Important notice

Verify performance before stock is loaded. Allow the cabinet to stand upright after transport for the period stated in the manufacturer instructions before it is switched on, then run it empty in its final position until the temperature is stable. Check the displayed readings against an independent calibrated thermometer, confirm the alarms operate, and confirm the core probe bottle is present and correctly positioned, since the core reading is meaningless without it. Accuracy of the readings used for cold chain records rests with the operating organisation, and no calibration certificate accompanies this cabinet unless this listing states otherwise.

Cold chain responsibilities. This refrigerator is a tool for maintaining a cold chain, not a substitute for the policy that governs it. The receiving organisation records current, minimum and maximum temperatures at the frequency its own medicines policy requires, resets the memory after each reading, retains the records, and holds a written plan for what happens to stock after a temperature excursion or a power failure. Vaccines exposed outside 2 to 8 degrees C are quarantined and assessed rather than assumed to be unaffected. Do not store food, drink or clinical samples alongside medicines, and do not store flammable or volatile substances in a cabinet not rated for them.

Installation, handling and access. The cabinet weighs 68.5 kg and stands 1,575 mm high, so it is a two person handling task and it will not pass through every doorway or fit under every worktop. Check the route and the final position before delivery, allowing 1,180 mm of depth for the door swing and the clearance the manufacturer instructions require around the cabinet so the condenser can shed heat. The door is right hand hinged and is not reversible on this model. Electrical safety testing is carried out on receipt for any pre-owned mains powered equipment, and ongoing maintenance sits under PUWER 1998 with the organisation operating the cabinet.

Information on this page is provided for guidance and does not replace advice from a qualified clinician. Always read the manufacturer's instructions before use, and check that a device is suitable for the patient and the prescribed therapy.