How a macadamia processor got 5,120 ft² of cold storage on the Big Island

A new macadamia cracking operation in Pahala, on Hawaii's Big Island, needed temperature-controlled storage. Building cold storage in Hawaii is expensive and slow, and on volcanic ground the team did not want anything permanent. A mobile ZSTORE 16XL, made of two 6XL rooms and one 4XL, met all three constraints. It was ZGROUP's first delivery in Hawaii, and a useful reference for anyone weighing cold storage Hawaii options.

The challenge

A new cracking operation changes how product flows through a site. Macadamias need to be stored under controlled conditions, and the storage has to be ready when the operation is.

The team faced three constraints at once:

• Cost. Building on the island is expensive.
• Time. Construction on the island is slow.
• Ground. On volcanic ground, the team did not want to put in anything permanent.

A traditional cold storage building would have run into all three.

The solution

ZGROUP delivered a mobile ZSTORE 16XL, configured as two 6XL rooms and one 4XL room. Each XL module is built from a refrigerated shipping container with a Thermo King refrigeration unit and adds 320 ft² of floor space, for a total of 5,120 ft².

The modules connect side by side, so each room works as one open walk-in rather than a row of separate boxes. Splitting the capacity into three rooms gives the operation flexibility in how it organizes its storage.

Because the system is plug and play, there was no permanent structure to build on the volcanic ground. The units are mobile: they can be moved and reinstalled if the operation's needs change.

The results

• 5,120 ft² of floor area across three rooms
• Cooler for fresh storage
• Plug & play: fast, even on an island

The processor got its storage without a construction project, and ZGROUP completed its first delivery in Hawaii.

Cold storage Hawaii: why modular fits island sites

Islands make every construction project harder. Materials, crews and equipment all have to come in, and permanent works tie up capital in a single spot. For many operations in Hawaii, that is reason enough to look at modular cold storage.

Modular cold storage built from refrigerated shipping containers arrives ready to work:

• No civil works. No permanent construction and only minimal site prep.
• Short timeline. Delivered in under 60 days and installed in 2 to 5 days.
• Scalable. One XL module is 320 ft² and about 20 pallet positions; modules connect side by side into larger rooms.
• Wide temperature range. From -40°F to +104°F (-40°C to +40°C), with zones that can run at different temperatures.
• Movable. Units can be moved and reinstalled at another site, which protects the investment.

Sizing is simple, too. Because every room is built from the same 320 ft² module, capacity can be split the way the operation works: one large room, or several smaller ones, as here. A 4XL is 1,280 ft², a 6XL is 1,920 ft², and each room can hold its own temperature. Because XL modules share the space, fewer refrigeration units are needed per square foot than with single containers.

Remote sites also benefit from remote monitoring. ZTRACK reports temperature and alarms, so the team knows the status of each room without being in front of it. Units come with Thermo King refrigeration and a 5-year warranty, and can be rented or bought.

Walk-in cooler or cold storage building?

Each room in this project is a walk-in cooler built from ZSTORE XL modules: one open space you walk into, with a Thermo King refrigeration unit per module. On an island, that means cold storage arrives as equipment, not as a building project. A small site can start with a single module; a larger one connects modules into rooms of any size, like the 6XL and 4XL rooms here.

Compare the options on our walk-in cooler and walk-in freezer pages.

Is it right for your operation?

If you are building a new operation where construction is slow or costly, modular cold storage can get you running without pouring concrete. See how ZSTORE XL modular cold storage is configured, or talk to our team about your site.