Shipping prescription drugs and vaccines to pharmacies, medical companies, clinics, or hospitals is an exacting task. To maintain the pharmaceutical products’ integrity and safety, they need to stay within specific temperature and humidity ranges.
The smallest temperature or humidity variation can put people’s health at risk and cost the pharmaceutical company a significant amount of money. During the supply chain process, there are many factors to consider in order to ensure the drugs and vaccines remain safe and follow shipping regulations from both the manufacturer and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Rules and Regulations for Shipping Pharmaceuticals
When dealing with pharma logistics, all manufacturers and FDA requirements must be met.
For pharma transport specifically, the FDA’s Code of Federal Regulations must be followed at all times. This code details how these products must be handled, temperature-controlled and recorded. These regulations are in place to ensure quality and safety standards for all types of drugs and vaccines.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has standardized international packing and shipping guidelines that must be followed when transporting pharmaceutical products like vaccines. These guidelines outline everything from insulated packing standards to vaccine arrival reports.
How to Protect Pharmaceuticals During Transport
As indicated by the rules and regulations set forth by the FDA and WHO, careful measures must be taken to ensure that pharmaceutical products are handled properly during transport. By following these guidelines and optimizing your supply chain with cold chain pharma logistics, you can protect your products and reduce the chances of damage during transport.
Optimizing Your Supply Chain
In order to keep pharmaceutical products safe during transport, you must optimize your supply chain by limiting the number of handoffs and ensuring that your goods are constantly stored in suitable conditions. To meet these requirements, companies that transport pharmaceuticals use a process known as cold chain shipping, or cold chain pharma logistics.
Cold Chain Pharma Logistics
Cold chain shipping enables safe and secure transport of pharmaceutical products by using refrigerated trucks and other cold storage areas throughout each step of the shipping ‘chain.’ Cold chain pharma transport usually involves the production and packaging of the products, shipping in refrigerated trucks, storage in a refrigerated warehouse and then marketing and distributing the drugs or vaccines at their final destination. From the initial loading at the factory to the final unloading and delivery, the cold chain must be maintained.
Cold Chain Transportation of Pharmaceutical Products During COVID-19
COVID-19 has caused an emergence of new trends in delivery services, in addition to presenting a new set of challenges for certain industries. The pandemic has put a lot of pressure on companies that deal with cold chain pharma logistics, as they have been tasked with transporting many promising cell and gene therapies between labs and testing facilities on short notice, while also handling their usual expected volume of existing temperature-sensitive therapies and vaccines on the market.
Why You Should Only Trust Professionals to Transport Pharmaceuticals
Instead of facing the intimidating task of maintaining temperature control, security, shipping regulations, and logistics management, let a qualified pharmaceutical transport company handle the details. With a team of experts transporting drugs and vaccines, you’ll enjoy the following benefits:
- Ensure products maintain a specific temperature: Reefer trucks, which are frequently used to transport perishable goods like drugs, are able to maintain a specific temperature throughout the entire shipping process. These trucks can handle large quantities of pharmaceutical goods and maintain exact temperature specifications, ranging from room temperature to freezing regardless of the outside temperature. Drivers can monitor the temperature for both maintenance and recording as they transport the goods.
- Enjoy flexible delivery options: Because of the individualized nature of pharmaceuticals, you need to be able to easily adapt depending on what you are shipping and delivering. Working with a team of experts ensures you have the tools and capabilities to easily switch between pharmaceutical needs while maintaining high-quality standards.
- Keep goods safe: Pharmaceutical products are both sensitive and expensive. Glass tubes, for example, can easily crack or break if mishandled. As these goods are loaded, transported and unloaded from the truck, a professional who is experienced in handling sensitive and valuable items will ensure these goods stay safe.
- Maintain regulatory compliance: Professionals with expertise in pharma transport understand all of the regulations that must be followed when loading, storing, and delivering these kinds of products.
- Get complete visibility: When your pharmaceutical products are handled by experts, you will be able to track the shipment and receive a notification when they have been delivered. These records are important for your business as well as for record-keeping to meet local or federal requirements.
Ship Pharmaceuticals Throughout NYC and Beyond With Mitchell’sNY Logistics
Since 1946, the staff at Mitchell’sNY Logistics have been providing reliable frozen delivery services for our customers in New York, Boston and beyond. Our team is intimately acquainted with the delivery area and the best driving routes, allowing you to reduce pharmaceutical shipping costs and ensure on-time delivery. Whether you need your pharmaceutical goods shipped early morning, late evening or even on the weekend, our team can deliver your goods on your terms.
As your pharmaceutical products are transported in our fleet of reefer trucks, we can guarantee they will be temperature controlled up to 65° F. From their origin to their final destination, your drugs and vaccines will always remain within the correct temperature range.
Let the experienced team at Mitchell’sNY Logistics protect the health and safety of your customers by handling all your pharmaceutical shipping needs. Contact us today for a free quote to learn more about how we can serve you.
