Page 38 - ITLN Nov-Dec 2022 For Magzter

Event Report
Global Pharma Logistics
Summit 2022

From (left to right) Vijay Shetty, Alkem Laboratories, Vilas Rebello, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Avinash Verma, Reliance Retail, Rashmi Karnad, Qatar
Airways Cargo, Ravi Kumar Tummalapalli, va-Q-tec, Binu Vijay Kumar, Thermofisher Scientific and Ryan Viegas, Pharma Consultant

have dual insulation, packaging up with 3PL players who had excellent
insulation panels along with PCMs. This cold chain facilities and replenish them
way the VIP insulates the product from on a timely basis to our distributors.”
external ambient temperature whereas Touching upon, real-time
PCMs maintain the temperature information and variable data for
inside the box which is the required an efficient cold chain in retail
temperature for the product.” distribution, Avinash Verma, General
Binu Vijay Kumar, General Manager Manager / Lead Pharma Cold Chain
of Supply Chain at Thermo Fisher Category & Procurement at Reliance
Scientific spoke about the importance Retail said, “From a storage point of
of designing cold rooms and processes view, warehouses should be thermally
around handling, picking, marking, mapped to understand the hot spots
labeling, and documentation in such and cold spots through sensors, etc, to
a way that once the product comes maintain a uniformity of temperature.
out of the warehouse, it can quickly As a shipper we need From the distribution perspective,
move out. He also stressed about the to take ownership of how there are many devices that have
importance of automation for physical we pack the product, come up like IoT-specific sensors,
despatches and the need for training whether we have qualified that are used for data analytics and
and reinforcement of staff for business understanding of the history, trends,
continuity management. packaging and conducted and forecasts of how shipments
Coming to packaging and real-time ‘lane risk assessment’ as are happening, and based on that
information, Kumar added, “I think a chain of activity to decisions can be taken. Blockchain
it’s time shippers take charge of the mitigate any risks in the is another emerging technology that
situation, instead of depending on supply chain. offers complete end-to-end visibility of
others and airlines. I think there is a the complete cold chain.”
lack of awareness about these new Ravi Kumar In another brief presentation at
technologies and there is a lethargy in Tummalapalli the event, Abhishek Thakur, MD
adopting them as it impacts the margins va-Q-tec of Odyssey Logistics outlined his
but it is impactful in the long run.” company’s foray into the pharma from
Talking about temperature excursion the automotive sector and how it built
in the pharma cold chain, Vijay Shetty, happens, we have limited our ‘inventory up its might in temperature-controlled
Vice President - Distribution and days’ with our distributors to ensure shipment operations and in handling
Logistics, Alkem Laboratories said, that they are capable of handling this pharmaceuticals all over the globe.
“Sometimes distributors are not aware surge and have the requisite facilities. The last panel of the event was
that the cancer products or insulin In our audits, we found out that in titled ‘Visibility & Predictability: Tech
have to be actually carried in a proper metro cities cold chain is maintained Interventions for Pharma Industry
cold chain kind of a set-up. So now by 70-80%, but in tier 2,3 cities it is 4.0’, which delved into the role
when a seasonal surge in demand still a big challenge. We have also tied of various modes of logistics and
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