Does hot water freeze first?

Apparently some scientists believe so. When I heard of the Mpemba effect, the first thing that came to my mind is that of the feasibility study I made regarding an ice plant project. Among the facilities in an ice plant is a "cooling tower" which serves to lower the temperature of the water before it is placed a metal container which is then placed in tank of cold brine possessing a temperature of about -5 to -10 degrees centigrade. If the Mpemba effect is, well, real, then cooling towers in ice plants are counterproductive facilities which reduce the efficiency of ice plants. The best practice for ice plants, then, is to pre-heat the water with solar heating before introducing them to the brine tank. I think this is where solar power can be useful in the ice manufacturing industry.