Independent third-party laboratory evaluations and quantifiable customer experience point to the same conclusion—ThermoGuard provides cost and other savings, extending the life of refrigerated trailers.
Designed by Great Dane, ThermoGuard is an exclusive glass reinforced thermoplastic interior liner’s advanced thermal properties, leading to long-term efficiency and costs savings for users of refrigerated trailers.
ThermoGuard samples were submitted by Great Dane to an independent third-party laboratory that specializes in permeability testing. In these tests, ThermoGuard was evaluated against several competitive lining materials for the permeability of the blowing agent used in trailer polyurethane.
These results agree with in-service test data confirming that ThermoGuard lining has the lowest permeability, protecting trailer insulation better and helping to maintain performance, which results in saving fuel over the life of the vehicle.
The innovative ThermoGuard lining has a barrier layer that reduces “out gassing” of the polyurethane foam used in reefer trailers for insulation. This key component seals the trailer’s insulation, significantly reducing the insulation degradation caused by normal aging in trailers with traditional interior linings.
With ThermoGuard, cooling units don’t have to work as hard to make up for degrading insulation performance. In turn, this reduces cooling unit run-time, saves fuel, extends refrigeration unit life, and lowers maintenance costs.
Great Dane’s testing stipulated that units without ThermoGuard exhibited rapid loss of thermal efficiency in the first two years of service and then continued to degrade over the life of the trailer. Evaluations of the same ThermoGuard equipped trailers after six, eight, and twenty months of service indicated an almost insignificant loss.
ThermoGuard also addresses the need for puncture strength in a trailer’s interior liner, which helps to prevent the force from pallets, cargo, or forklifts from damaging the foam insulation in the trailer walls during loading and unloading. This damage can ultimately harm thermal integrity. The impact resistance comes from ThermoGuard’s high-glass content and its placement in the glass-reinforced, thermoplastic liners. With more glass than any other product on the market, and a design that orients the glass with appropriate proximity to the surface, this unique liner provides exceptional strength and stiffness. In addition, the liner remains resilient, so the impact from loading equipment is less likely to puncture or tear.
Additionally, ThermoGuard offers a unique adhesion system, with a specialized layer that serves as a highly effective anchor into the foam insulation. This strong mechanical bond helps protect against wear and tear which can lead to damaging the foam attached to the liner and cause the liner to separate from the insulation inside the trailer’s walls. As tests indicate, ThermoGuard extends a refrigerated trailer’s useful life by performing extraordinarily well for Great Dane customers over longer periods of time. In all areas, this revolutionary liner is proving to be superior to all other options currently available on the market.
