TOWER Cold Chain partners with SpiceJet, EFL to move Covid-19 vaccines

February 3, 2021: TOWER Cold Chain Solutions announced an exclusive partnership with SpiceJet and EFL (Expo Freight) India for pharmaceutical and vaccine deliveries across India and the sub-continent.

TOWER rents containers to the pharmaceutical industry that are used to transport products that need temperature control. TOWER’s headquarter is at Theale, close to London’s Heathrow Airport. Its other hubs are in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Brussels, Frankfurt, Manchester, Singapore, Shanghai, Melbourne, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth

EFL, the supply-chain and freight-forwarding company, currently handle over 20 million shipments to 25 countries through their 60+ offices worldwide.

Senthil Shanmugam, CEO, EFL global & managing director, EFL INDIA, said, “The containers we chose are obviously of the utmost importance for this expansion and operation as we need to know that they are not only reliable but they are robust and reusable. After long consideration and market analysis, we chose TOWER above all others for the flexibility and reliability they bring. To have a partner we can rely on like TOWER allows us to push forward with confidence and ensure we deliver compliant vaccines and save as many people’s lives as possible.”

SpiceJet will provide narrow and wide-bodied aircraft to carry TOWER containers and Covid-19 vaccines across India. With over 90 aircraft, SpiceJet will look at distributing across 63 domestic airports and 11 international airports to ensure the supply chain and distribution objectives are met.

Sanjiv Gupta, CEO of SpiceXpress, said, “The Covid-19 pandemic has brought forth the fact that Indian cold-chain infrastructure for pharma products is rudimentary and will take time to evolve. The tripartite agreement signed between SpiceXpress, Expo-Freight and TOWER, envisages to provide the pharma companies a speedy and reliable end-to-end cold-chain logistics solution. This strategic partnership is believed to lay a strong foundation for cold-chain infrastructure not only in India, but overseas too.”

“With TOWER’s expertise in manufacturing temperature-controlled boxes, EFL’s strong global presence and SpiceXpress’ varied aircraft fleet, I firmly believe that we are all set to give the cold-chain Industry in India the much-needed impetus it has been waiting for.”

The combination of TOWER’s containers, EFL’s logistic and SpiceJet's transportation skills will give to the market a very powerful solution to what has been seen by many as a very complex and fragmented market. 

Sean Petzer, General Manager of TOWER Africa & India, said, “We have already learnt so much and this is just the beginning as we work together to supply vaccines and other pharmaceutical products across the Indian sub-continent. We are very proud that our containers were exclusively chosen above all our competitors for this venture and are incredibly excited to be part of this global team. The innovation and knowledge we will gain from what is an unprecedented opportunity will be of great benefit.”

The partnership has already tested out their cold-chain solution with containers at various temperatures to ensure that any and all issues are ironed out regardless of the compliance requirements the vaccines may require.

Niall Balfour, CEO, TOWER Cold Chain Solutions, said, “We’re delighted SpiceJet and EFL have chosen TOWER as their strategic partner to supply temperature-controlled solutions to support the distribution of vital vaccine across the Indian sub-continent. TOWER is extending its global reach and our ambition to offer capability across India and the sub-continent is now realized with this exciting tripartite partnership”.