High five: Carrier says innovators and adopters will drive cold chain growth

The American Journal of Transportation was recently able to ask Willy Yeo, Carrier Transicold’s General Manager, Reefers, five questions about the state of the worldwide cold chain. Yeo also leads the development of Carrier Transicold’s product strategy. With nine years at Carrier, and now based in Singapore, he is part of the senior team that oversees the development of connected cold chain solutions. Prior to Carrier, he held senior marketing and commercial roles across Asia Pacific and EMEA.

AJOT: Have advancements in cold chain technology moved management from reactive to predictive?

YEO: Yes, but the shift is still unfolding across the industry. For decades, the cold chain operated on a simple premise: set the temperature, load the cargo and inspect on arrival. Problems were often only identified after the fact. Between loading and discharge, operators had limited visibility into what was actually happening inside the container.

What has changed is the depth and immediacy of available data, along with the intelligence applied to it. Connected refrigeration systems...now generate continuous performance data throughout a voyage. (Carrier’s) Lynx Fleet combines IoT, advanced analytics and machine learning to help connect the cold chain, automate key processes and deliver real-time visibility throughout a cargo’s journey.

The result is improved cargo protection, more efficient maintenance planning, enhanced equipment availability and a documented performance history that supports customer confidence. Shippers increasingly expect visibility into conditions throughout a shipment, not just at delivery. (Carrier’s solutions have) active controlled atmosphere (CA) technology reinforce this shift, enabling oxygen (OL) and carbon dioxide (COL) levels to be continuously monitored, recorded and accessed remotely through Lynx Fleet, helping provide end-to-end visibility for sensitive perishables from origin to destination.

While the shift toward proactive, data-driven reefer management is well underway, the transition remains uneven. Older equipment, connectivity gaps and varying levels of fleet investment mean reactive practices persist, particularly at sea, where ocean transit has historically been the most challenging segment to monitor due to limited network coverage and reliance on manual reefer checks.

AJOT: Is innovation in cold chain technology opening up new opportunities in maritime transport, particularly in life sciences?

YEO: The opportunity is both real and substantial. By one measure, the pharmaceutical cold chain logistics market is projected to reach $9.6 billion by 2035, with more than 85% of biologics requiring cold storage at precisely controlled temperatures.

As the industry evolves, ocean transport is gaining recognition as a more sustainable and cost-effective alternative to air transport for pharmaceutical shipments, particularly for non-time-sensitive cargo. However, this transition places significant demands on refrigeration technology. The margin for error in life sciences is far narrower than in food logistics. A temperature deviation that may be tolerable in a perishable food shipment can compromise the efficacy of a high-value biologic, rendering it unusable and creating financial and regulatory risk.

Meeting these demands requires refrigeration systems engineered for precision and endurance. (Now) every data point is captured, recorded and made accessible remotely, establishing the verifiable chain-of-custody documentation that life sciences stakeholders require.

(Carrier’s) tools help ensure refrigeration performance remains within specification throughout transit, significantly reducing the risk of temperature excursions.

In maritime transport, capabilities such as excursion tracking, audit-ready documentation and cargo visibility are no longer differentiators but expected requirements. Maritime operators equipped with connected, data-driven platforms such as Lynx Fleet are better positioned to meet these requirements and participate in the growth of this high-value segment.

AJOT: Is investing in the cold chain still a good bet?

YEO: The cold chain remains a strong long-term investment, supported by durable demand drivers and continued innovation. With decades at the center of cold chain technology development, we have a clear view of the segment’s trajectory, and the fundamentals remain strong.

Rising global demand for perishables, continued growth in pharmaceutical and life sciences logistics, and the food security requirements of import-dependent economies are long-term drivers that continue to reinforce the importance of refrigerated transport. With this compounding demand comes increasing expectations for performance, precision and transparency across the cold chain.

Carrier Transicold continues to invest. Specifically in predictive intelligence. Solutions such as TripWise™ and Reefer Health Analytics enable operators to move from reactive maintenance to more proactive, data-informed decision-making, reducing unplanned downtime and improving equipment availability. For controlled atmosphere shipments, our solutions allow exporters to extend shelf life and reach new markets with oxygen (OL) and carbon dioxide (COL) levels monitored and accessible remotely through Lynx Fleet to support informed decision-making.

These developments reflect a broader shift in how refrigerated containers are managed, monitored and optimized. The cold chain remains a strong investment area, and for the industries and economies that depend on it, an essential one. Carrier Transicold remains committed to leading this continued evolution, one that is expected to not just persist, but to accelerate into increasingly high-value solutions.

AJOT: Robert Sappio of SeaCube recently told us every Carrier reefer the company invest in comes “telematics ready.” Is this going to be standard for the industry or is it already?

YEO: “Telematics ready” is rapidly becoming a baseline expectation across the container shipping industry. Among major carriers and leasing companies, it is becoming standard practice, particularly among forward-thinking industry leaders like SeaCube. However, it has not yet been established as a formal global requirement.

Modern refrigerated containers are increasingly equipped with telematic control units and GPS tracking to provide shipping lines, cargo owners and logistics providers with real-time visibility over their cold chain assets. Carrier Transicold’s Lynx™ Fleet telematics platform is a leading example of this shift, connecting refrigerated containers to a centralized cloud-based system that delivers continuous monitoring of temperature performance, equipment health and cargo conditions throughout a voyage.

An important push toward industry-wide standardization has come from the Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA). In 2020, the DCSA published its IoT Data Standard for Remote Reefer Container Monitoring on Board a Vessel, now widely regarded as the industry baseline for reefer telemetry, defining a minimum set of data elements from smart reefer containers to be shared with vessel crew in real time. In 2023, the DCSA and its member carriers advanced this foundation with the Reefer Events Standards, published as part of the DCSA Track and Trace Framework, enabling standardized data sharing related to the tracking and tracing of reefers across the supply chain.

Recent activity in 2025–2026 has not been about redefining the standard itself but rather about scaling its adoption, embedding it into broader interoperable data ecosystems, and extending its reach through API-based event frameworks and cross-stakeholder integration. This reflects a clear shift in industry momentum from specification development to deployment, as carriers and technology providers work to operationalize these standards at scale.

Commercial momentum continues to build. By one estimate, the global cold chain telematics market is projected to reach $10.28 billion by 2034, and telematics capability is increasingly viewed as a baseline expectation for perishable logistics rather than a competitive differentiator.

That said, the DCSA standards remain voluntary. There are currently no international regulations requiring reefer containers to be equipped with telematics. Adoption is being driven by commercial pressure from major carriers, shipper demand for end-to-end visibility and the operational advantages that connected platforms such as Lynx Fleet deliver, rather than by legal obligation.

AJOT: Is reducing the standard cold chain temperature from -18 ºC to -15ºC a realistic idea?

YEO: The concept of moving from -18 ºC to -15ºC has generated meaningful industry discussion and reflects a shared focus on improving sustainability outcomes. As with any shift in established cold chain practices, it merits careful evaluation to fully understand its impact across different use cases and stakeholders.

An important consideration is that many customers today are already using energy saving software modes, even in frozen applications, that deliver greater energy savings than what a 3°C rise in set point would achieve. Modes such as QUEST II Power-saving Mode and Carrier Transicold’s FuelWise™ are specifically designed to optimize energy consumption without compromising cargo integrity. However, if customers adjust the set point to -15°C, they cannot simultaneously run these energy saving software modes, or they risk operational issues. In effect, adopting a -15°C set point could offset the energy savings customers are already achieving through these available power saving modes.

While ports and terminals have expressed interest, largely because a higher set point can reduce their energy costs and emissions, the broader shipping line community has not uniformly endorsed the move to -15°C. Realizing the full benefits of a higher set point would also depend on how equipment is operated, including the potential trade-offs with advanced optimization modes that are already delivering measurable efficiency gains today.

From our perspective, it is important that any evolution in temperature standards is grounded in a comprehensive understanding of food safety, cargo quality and operational performance. The U.S. Department of Agriculture identifies -18°C as the recommended temperature for safe frozen food storage, and raising the set point can introduce risks to cargo quality, shelf life and food safety. We see significant opportunity to advance sustainability through smarter refrigeration technologies and operational strategies rather than altering established food safety standards.