Fridge Doors - Is There an Alternative? (Part 3)
In our previous blogs we examined real energy savings and the true cost of doors. The blogs showed that doors don’t save much energy in store use when compared properly and, the lifetime cost of doors for supermarkets who install them, is much higher than the initial purchase cost.
But if doors aren’t the answer, what is?
In this article we show how new technology means for the first time, supermarkets can have the best of both worlds - all the energy savings of fridges with doors, but from open fronted, barrier-free, fridges.
In 2019, Aerofoil Energy completed a 2-year research project - the objective being to create a super-efficient fridge cabinet without doors. Designed using advanced CFD and aerodynamic techniques, derived from formula-1, we built a prototype open-fridge which was tested against an industry leading cabinet fitted with doors.
It succeeded. The prototype open fridge (ELITE_V19_V3) we built consumes less energy, and provides significantly better food temperatures, than the same fridge fitted with doors.
CFD Outputs
Prototype Build: Elite Fridge Cabinet
This was all back in 2019, so you may be wondering why there isn’t a super-fridge on the market today? Well, Aerofoil Energy isn't a fridge manufacturer (and has no desire to be one), but that has changed somewhat in 2025, and if you are running a supermarket - this is the part that is exciting.
Before any big reveal, we have to ask that you take a moment to understand that there are 2 very different parts to the solutions we can offer to supermarkets – retrofit and new case design. These are very different areas, so require different solutions. For example, when you retrofit doors to previously open fridge cabinets, they are usually much less effective than when you have bought them on new fridge cabinets. This is for a range of reasons, but broadly – the refrigeration system is the wrong size for the doors, so they don’t work very well. The same applies with our technology – when we design modifications into a new cabinet, they will deliver much more energy than if we try to retrofit (we can’t alter the fundamental cabinet design of fridges in stores). So the complexity is that there are 2 solutions for supermarkets to choose from – retrofit is called INVISIDOOR and new case optimisation is called ELITE:
1. INVISIDOOR - Retrofit Cases - designed to be quickly and easily retrofitted to existing fridge cabinets in supermarkets. Invisidoor is installed without any disruption - no need to empty food or turn fridges off, fitted in minutes, saves as much energy as retrofitting doors - but at a fraction the cost. Barrier-fee sales and no recurring maintenance, cleaning or operation costs.
2. INVISIDOOR - New Cases - designed to be installed by any fridge case manufacturer in the factory, so fridges arrive with Invisidoor pre-installed. Lower-cost refrigeration racks/packs, saves as much (or more) energy as doors - but at a fraction the cost. Barrier-free sales and no recurring maintenance, cleaning or operation costs.
Not only does INVISIDOOR provide customer friendly, barrier-free shopping, but they are maintenance-free, don’t require any additional cleaning and have no impact on store operations, making them a far more attractive investment for supermarkets.
INVISISDOOR and ELITE are now available and being adopted by smart supermarkets the world over.
ELITE - optimised cabinet designs completed with three major manufacturers in Europe, in process in the USA.
INVISIDOOR - retrofitted by 3 leading UK supermarkets, due to be installed in Europe and the USA by October 2025.
To learn more about barrier-free, energy efficient cooling, contact Aerofoil Energy.