Healthcare Logistics
Thus, cold chain logistics has become the most relevant component in the entire supply chain process of pharmaceutical products.
The cold chain logistic services are experiencing a high demand in pharmaceutical industry as its aims to assist in extending and ensuring the shelf life of pharmaceutical drugs.
An improperly managed cold chain can lead to serious quality and safety concerns, which may end in spoiler of products and serious harms to end users.
Applying best practices and following the Good Distribution Practice (GDP) will ensure to avoid risks and allow better control over the final outcome.
The GDP is minimum standard requiring that medicines are obtained from the licensed supply chain and properly stored, transported and handled under best conditions, as required by the product specification.
Pharma products should be transported in such a way that their identification is not lost, they are not contaminated by other products or materials, relative measures are taken against spillage and breakage. The products should be transported in safe and not subjected to unacceptable degrees of heat, cold, light, moisture or other adverse influence.
These products should also be normally stored and under the conditions specified by the manufacturer with a view to avoid any deterioration by light, temperature or moisture. Records of the temperature should be monitored periodically.
Transporting such a cargo across the supply chain without suffering any delays or temperature anomalies requires the GDP and establishment of a proper logistical process to maintain the shipment integrity. This complex process envisages several phases beginning from the preparation of the shipments up to final verification of the integrity of the shipment at the delivery point:
Cargo preparation – while transporting a temperature sensitive product, it is vital to first assess its characteristics. Here the core issue is the temperature conditioning of the shipment, which should already be at the desired temperature. Cold chain devices are commonly designed to keep a temperature constant, but not to bring a shipment to this temperature, so they would be unable to perform adequately if a shipment is not prepared and conditioned. Other concerns are the final
destination of the freight and weather conditions for those regions, such as if the shipment will be exposed to extreme cold or heat along the transport route.