The innovation and development environment connected to Raufoss has an established culture for sharing and has continuously developed new products based on the collective experience and expertise in the industrial community. Their latest innovation is Oyster Thermal, a revolutionary technology being introduced by a cooler.

- When we started exploring coolers, we were surprised by the lack of development and innovation. The market was dominated by oversized boxes made of basic materials and outdated ways of thinking.

Ian Sandmæl is the co-founder and chief designer of Oyster Thermal. He received his education at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena and has also worked with WORK and Hareide Designmill. Ian Sandmæl discovered the industrial environment in Raufoss while searching for relevant development and production environments for his new product.

- Raufoss' expertise in producing lightweight products and aluminum underpins the new cooler and is the reason for establishing our production unit there.

 Unique Product Features
The concept of home delivery of food gave birth to the idea of a cooler that could maintain food safety for up to 20 hours in warm temperatures. However, there was a shortage of coolers that could achieve this, so we took inspiration from thermoses. We wondered if the vacuum insulation that allowed thermoses to retain heat could be used to retain cold instead.

- We spent six years developing the world's first performance cooler, exploring lightweight materials and high-tech insulation systems, calculating thermal equations, prototyping, failing, and learning from our mistakes.

Thermal Properties
The cooler uses only cooling elements and thin aluminum sheets, yet it is three times colder than its competitors.

- We used aluminum as it is diffusion-tight, holding the vacuum. The insulation technology in our prototype was six times more efficient than our competition, says Sandmæl.
 
The production process involves shaping one-millimeter-thick aluminum sheets with the help of experience and knowledge in the craft of working with aluminum. This craft is deeply embedded in the walls of Raufoss and is utilized by numerous companies that use aluminum as a vital component in their products. Finn Arne Børresen, an experienced industrial professional, leads the production process in Raufoss, bringing his years of expertise to the table.

The cooler has been designed in such a way that it can be disassembled without any tools, and is 100% recyclable. This groundbreaking technology has been developed to help address environmental challenges, rather than adding to them.

 
- Oyster is a high-performance and functional cooler that is developed from scratch, and is the first of its kind, emphasizes Sandmæl.

 

First the beach and picnics, then on to new markets
The technology used for keeping food and drinks cold on the beach is now efficient and advanced enough to expand into new market areas. Home delivery of food, medicine, and organ transport are some of the obvious and adjacent areas where this technology can be utilized.

Further development of this technology's insulation capability can also be explored for other markets that require cooling and less energy use, especially with the climate getting warmer. Additionally, there is a growing demand for lightweight and recyclable materials in such markets.

- Our goal is to create innovative technology that solves environmental problems rather than adding to them, Sandmæl concludes. The first batch of coolers is now available for purchase.