Vehicle listings say isothermal, container catalogues say insulated, and isotherm turns up mostly in physics and weather texts. Because the words share a root, one is often taken as shorthand for another. In transport, isothermal and insulated describe the same insulated body, while an isotherm is a line on a measurement chart, not a product.
The GEBHARDT page brings together Isotec containers and related technical documents.
| Word | Where it is used | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Isotherm | Physics, measurement, meteorology | A line joining points of equal temperature; not a product class |
| Isothermal | Transport language, some ATP language versions such as Spanish | An insulated body; no guarantee of constant temperature |
| Insulated | Turkish official ATP wording, commercial description | A body or container with an insulation layer |
The ATP roadside inspection guide of the Turkish Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure calls this body insulated equipment: rigid insulating walls, doors, floor and roof, with heat exchange between inside and outside limited by the K coefficient. The Spanish official text of ATP names the same class unidad isoterma. In transport, isothermal and insulated are therefore two names for one class, and any difference shows only in the measured figure.
The figure that makes comparison possible: the K coefficient
ATP defines two insulation classes. Class IN, normally insulated equipment, has a K coefficient of at most 0.70 W/m²K; class IR, heavily insulated equipment, has at most 0.40 W/m²K, with side walls at least 45 mm thick on bodies wider than 2.50 m. Two quotes that say isothermal or insulated become comparable only once this figure and the test report sit side by side.
Insulation produces no cold; it only slows heat coming in. In ATP, refrigerated equipment is an insulated body with a cold source added, such as eutectic plates, water ice or dry ice, while mechanically refrigerated equipment has a cooling unit running in the body.
GEBHARDT Isotec TBX sits on the passive side of that line: the insulated container works with eutectic plates or dry ice and is ATP- and HACCP-certified. GEBHARDT's own product page calls the same container both an isothermal container and an insulated container, which is a good example of two words describing one object.
Frequently asked questions
Is an isothermal vehicle the same as a refrigerated one?
No, they are different. An isothermal body provides insulation only, while a refrigerated vehicle also carries a mechanical cooling unit. The scope and cost of a conversion are covered in refrigeration unit or insulated container.
Can the word isotherm appear in a product name?
It can, but not in its technical sense. Shortened use is common in marketing language; relying on the same shorthand in a specification leads buyer and seller to understand different things.
Which word should go into a specification?
The word itself changes nothing; write the ATP class, the measured K coefficient and the cold source next to it. A line reading insulated body, IR, K at most 0.40 W/m²K, eutectic plates is read the same way by both sides.
