Pharmaceuticals makes for the most lucrative and niche product that the air cargo players transport today. Indisputably valuable, the product however demands strict adherence to changing regulations that comes along. The air cargo industry will have to continuously adapt to these requirements for better business returns and to make it a win-win situation for both the sectors.
Billions of dollars are being spent each year on research and devel-opment of new drugs that help people battle serious diseases surfacing every other day. Considering the criticality of these lifesaving products, the sheer wastage that could reach around $35 billion in a year due to temperature excursions during transport is worrisome, feels the International Air Transport Association (IATA). It’s not just about the loss of the physical product but also the associated costs in terms of root cause analysis, replacement expenditures, direct/indirect labor lost and wasted logistics costs.
According to industry statistics, the total spending on medicines is forecast to reach $1.5 trillion by 2021. In this, however, the rise in spending on biologics and specialty drugs would especially be substantial, believe market experts. However, it is also to be noted that in this thumping and profiting market, the amount of losses incurred will also continue to rise unless better preventative measures are put in place. There is a pressing need to bring change, especially in the way the logistics industry functions and manages the pharmaceutical supply chain as it can shrink this wastage to a significant level. Moreover, with companies like Amazon increasing their focus in the logistics space and now eyeing the pharma market too, it becomes all the more important for the logistics players to buck up.
Keeping pace with stricter regulations
The pharmaceutical goods shipped by air are indisputably valuable and, in most cases, require very specific handling and storage conditions. Customers are increasingly demanding risk lane assessments and categorizing carriers’ services with standard criteria. Tracking devices and real time information is mostly a prerequisite, driven by harsher regulations.
This story is from the September 2017 edition of The Stat Trade Times.
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This story is from the September 2017 edition of The Stat Trade Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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