From 3 to 5 June in Liyang, Jiangsu — the 2026 National Forum on High-Quality Development of Refrigeration and Cold Storage was held under the theme “Digital intelligence empowering, moving forward with innovation”. It examined core topics including cold chain food, energy saving and carbon reduction in refrigeration systems, equipment reliability and whole-life-cycle cost, drawing design institutes, engineering companies, end users and core equipment suppliers. Nexson was invited to attend and joined industry experts and company representatives from across the country to explore new paths for digital and green high-quality development in refrigeration and cold storage.
Keynote presentation
Application analysis and case sharing for plate-and-shell heat exchangers in the refrigeration industry
In the technical session, Liu Peng, Nexson’s National Sales Director for General Industry and Refrigeration, presented “Application and Case Sharing of Plate-and-Shell Heat Exchangers”. Working from the key demands of refrigeration systems — compact, high efficiency, low charge — and reviewing real cases, he explained why plate-and-shell heat exchangers hold up over the long term under severe working conditions:
Higher heat transfer efficiency, smaller footprint: against conventional thinking, a plate-and-shell unit delivers more effective heat transfer area per unit volume, at one third to one fifth the size and weight of an equivalent shell-and-tube unit.
Low charge, efficient and environmentally sound: the fully welded plate design gives higher efficiency and smaller volume, so refrigerant charge under equivalent conditions is only 20%–30% of a conventional scheme — saving investment and being kinder to the environment.
Patented plate-and-shell unit with internal gas separator, taking compactness to the limit: Nexson’s patented design makes the evaporation system more compact and the overall refrigerant charge lower. Its distinctive refrigerant inlet and jet distribution design produces better evaporation performance.
The presentation covered not only products and technology but also a large number of application examples using environmentally sound refrigerants such as NH₃, CO₂ and R1233zd(E) in refrigeration, heat pumps and ORC, giving customers more reference points.
At the booth: from “interesting” to “workable”
After the session, the Nexson booth became a stopping point for many customers. Discussion generally concentrated on three things:
How to replace or upgrade existing equipment in an existing machine room: raising energy efficiency without interrupting production rhythm.
The application of semi-welded plate heat exchangers in refrigeration systems: using laser-welded channels for the corrosive or refrigerant side and gasketed channels for the process side, combining reliable sealing with removable cleaning, suited to the “continuous operation plus seasonal peaks” of food freezing lines.
Whether plate-and-shell heat exchangers are mature and stable: with performance this compact, efficient and low-charge, how is reliability guaranteed?
These conversations could go deep, and Nexson’s plate-and-shell and semi-welded units could earn full recognition from experts and customers, for one important underlying reason: reference projects in operation.
On site: Jiangsu Guchenghu Food Co., Ltd.
As the closing item of the forum, the organisers took attendees to visit the deep processing and cold chain facilities of Jiangsu Guchenghu Food Co., Ltd. As the largest modern agricultural processing investment in Nanjing in 2026, the project’s CO₂ cascade freezing system was designed and built by COFCO Engineering & Technology under the central state-owned COFCO Group, and all refrigeration skids use plate-and-shell heat exchangers made at the Nexson Beijing factory together with semi-welded units from its thermowave brand. During the visit, the stable running condition on site, compact installation, orderly machine room and system load response became the most persuasive third-party endorsement, with several visitors remarking that the operation “really deserves credit”.
View from site (Nexson plate-and-shell and semi-welded plate heat exchangers)
In closing
Attending the forum was both a valuable opportunity to exchange and learn with industry peers and an important platform to present the company’s technical strength and brand. Nexson will continue to deepen its presence in refrigeration and cold storage, drive product upgrading through technical innovation, support the industry’s green and low-carbon development with high-efficiency heat exchange solutions, and contribute more to the high-quality development of China’s refrigeration and cold storage industry.
About Jiangsu Guchenghu Food Co., Ltd.
Jiangsu Guchenghu Food Co., Ltd. is one of the industrialisation platforms extending from the Nanjing Qingsong Guchenghu crab system, an enterprise integrating “farming – processing – cold chain – distribution”.
The Guchenghu specialty aquatic product R&D and deep processing base it drives is listed as a major Nanjing project for 2026, with total investment of RMB 1.6 billion on about 121 mu. It focuses on deep processing of crayfish, crabs and other specialty aquatic products, introducing key steps such as –196 °C liquid nitrogen flash freezing and ultra-low-temperature cold storage, with a product line covering ready-to-eat and ingredient-type aquatic products and higher value-added extensions. The company now ranks among the top three nationally in its category, and its products reach households across the country.
