Pharma.Aero welcomes new members

Image source: Pharma.Aero

Pharma.Aero has welcomed several new members: logistics provider Dachser; temperature-controlled container manufacturer SkyCell; carriers Lufthansa Cargo and Swiss WorldCargo; and time-critical specialist time:matters.

The latter three are all part of the Lufthansa Group and have joined as one member.

Belgium-based Pharma.Aero is an international collaboration platform that brings together medical technology and pharmaceutical companies, as well as logistics experts, freight companies and airport operators; it now has over 50 partners and members.

Germany-based Dachser has CEIV Pharma-certified locations on three continents and over 400 GDP-trained LSH specialists. 

Netka Hohlfeld, department head life science and healthcare logistics at Dachser, said: “The life sciences and healthcare industry is experiencing an accelerated supply chain transformation; an increased need for efficiency, differentiation and access to new geographies; it is being challenged to enable digital supply chain solutions.

“Dachser aims at being strongly involved in Pharma.Aero community. With the membership, industry requirements and potential challenges can be thoroughly investigated.”

SkyCell’s focus is not only on serving the pharmaceutical industry through the provision of temperature-controlled containers, but also on sustainability; climate neutral today, it is aiming for net-zero emissions by 2040.

Chiara Venuti, head of strategic partnerships at SkyCell, sees the partnership with Pharma.Aero as an opportunity to “champion projects, share information and come together as an industry to create a seamless logistics network for our customers. Our commitment to safe, secure and sustainable temperature-controlled container solutions aligns perfectly with Pharma.Aero’s mission to enhance excellence in the pharma supply chain.

“We look forward to collaborating with Pharma.Aero and its members to develop industry standards and best practices for the life sciences and MedTech sector,” she added.

Frank Van Gelder, secretary general of Pharma.Aero, said: “By including Dachser in our group of full members and SkyCell in the group of associate partners, Pharma.Aero further strengthens its knowledge within the life sciences supply chain and logistics. Welcoming these two international players underlines the international collaboration among stakeholders Pharma.Aero stands for.”

As for the new airline members, Lufthansa Cargo and Swiss WorldCargo both have extensive experience in the transport of time-critical medical technology and temperature-sensitive medicines like insulin or vaccines.

Lufthana Cargo moves up to 1,400 tons of pharma each week and has 30 CEIV Pharma locations in its network. Swiss WorldCargo offers CEIV-certified and GDP-compliant temperature-controlled infrastructure, facilities and logistics solutions across its entire network.

Ashwin Bhat, chief executive officer at Lufthansa Cargo, highlighted the value of sharing views and experience with other members of the pharma supply chain. “The exchange of knowledge sharpens understanding – not only for the needs of business partners and customers, but also for the existing and future demand for products,” he said.

Swiss International Airlines head of cargo Lorenzo Stoll echoed Bhat, saying: “In cold chain logistics, a robust collaboration system between all parties involved is of extreme value. By entering the Pharma.Aero network as a member, we aim to drive knowledge sharing and expertise building even further.”

time:matters, meanwhile, has been an expert in the worldwide transport of time-critical and temperature-sensitive products such as cell material and medical samples for use in cell and gene therapy for over 20 years.

“The requirements for cell and gene therapies logistics differ significantly from those of traditional pharmaceutical logistics solutions,” noted Lars Krosch, chief operating officer at time:matters. “These therapies put the patient at the center, which makes a robust, reliable, resilient and scalable supply chain essential. As a new member of the Pharma.Aero network, we look forward to contributing our long-standing expertise to the development of a global logistics infrastructure to provide patients with better access to advanced therapies and healthcare services.”

Pharma.Aero chairman Trevor Caswell said: “Onboarding such a significant, global industry leader, with a clear and determined focus on the life sciences and MedTech sector, demonstrates once more the importance of our mission and the value our association provides to the industry. We are excited to collaborate and leverage our industry knowledge through forward-thinking projects that offer meaningful content to our industry and result in better access to healthcare for people around the world.”

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