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Piecing Together the Lifescience Logistics Puzzle

Think of lifescience logistics as a puzzle, with a critical piece being the delivery of life-saving medicines and supplies for disaster relief efforts, such as Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

Maintaining medications within appropriate temperature ranges is critical throughout the supply chain, presenting challenges to temperature-sensitive products as they’re loaded and unloaded onto airplanes.
Maintaining medications within appropriate temperature ranges is critical throughout the supply chain, presenting challenges to temperature-sensitive products as they’re loaded and unloaded onto airplanes.

Packing sustained 185 mph winds gusting to 225 mph, potentially catastrophic Category 5 Hurricane Irma was barreling toward Florida just before this issue went to press, with Hurricane Jose roaring just behind. All of this in the wake of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation.

Logistics efforts to address disasters like Hurricane Harvey are massive, impressive and inspiring. The Journal of Commerce’s online logistics resource fact sheet provides ongoing Harvey updates regarding contributions from logistics companies and transportation providers, noting how people can contribute to charitable organizations to help those affected by the storm and flooding. (PMMI established a donation link and will match all funds donated to the American Red Cross in support of Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund up to $100,000.)

CannedWater4Kids, a 501c3 charity, and ink supplier INX Intl. announced on Sept. 7 that they teamed up to rush delivery of drinking water to help in Hurricane Harvey disaster relief efforts, sending a truckload of 52,800, 12-oz cans of fresh, purified water to a Red Cross distribution center near Houston.

An Aug. 25Freightways.com article noted, “For trucking companies forced to weather a natural disaster, such as a hurricane, the return to normal operations can take time. Equipment may have been moved out of the region as a precaution, roads may be blocked, flooded or otherwise damaged, and customer operations may not have resumed.”

Hurricane Harvey efforts included the establishment of mobile pharmacies in ravaged areas in Texas and Louisiana to give people access to medications.

The logistics community serves as the tip of the spear in transporting potentially life-saving medicines and supplies to victims of natural disasters. Yet several other pieces complete today’s lifescience logistics puzzle. In this story, we look at some of those factors, including temperature-sensitive supply chain considerations, home healthcare and e-commerce, market fragmentation and consolidation, and the role of technology, including the use of drones as a delivery option.

Consolidation and market fragmentation
A ResearchAndMarkets report, "Global Pharmaceutical Logistics Market 2017-2021," says consolidation represents the latest trend gaining momentum. It notes, “The market is highly fragmented with a large number of players. The fragmentation causes difficulties for big players to enter into some countries across the world. To break the entry barrier, the big players are accepting consolidation as a tool to enter into the market. More than an entry, consolidation helps the players to adopt modern technologies from the regional or small players and make them expand their market presence. Consolidation also supports the small vendors to attain profitability in the competitive market.”

Home healthcare and e-commerce
Another trend in the pharmaceutical logistics market is the rising demand for home healthcare products. Contributing to this burgeoning home healthcare market, “is the growth of mail-order prescription deliveries to individual patients,” says Michael Kuebler, Technical Director, Smithers Pira North America.

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INTRODUCING! The Latest Trends for Life Sciences at PACK EXPO Southeast