Global logistics service provider, Kuehne+Nagel (K+N) has opened new pharma hubs in Johannesburg, South Africa and Brussels, Belgium, ahead of the much anticipated global distribution of Coronavirus vaccination which is currently being trialed and tested worldwide.
Both pharma facilities have dedicated areas for temperature-sensitive products to be stored at different ranges below -20°C; 2°C to +8°C; and 15° to 25°C and are are GxP-certified. In addition, the world-class hubs can also add dry ice for cargo shipments where lower temperatures need to be maintained mainly below -60°C.
The Brussels hub has 15,546 sq m of storage space and has connections to the recently extended Geel Contract Logistics pharma warehousing facility, as well as the pan-European K+N PharmaChain road logistics network.
The Johannesburg facility was built to accommodate both lower deck and main deck pallet sizes and has temperature-controlled KN PharmaChain dollies available to maintain products’ temperature during transfer from the plane to the warehouse.
Yngve Ruud, Member of the Management Board at K+N, and an overseer of the company’s air logistics said, “Today, new pharma and healthcare products tend to be more valuable, more temperature-sensitive and have additional requirements for storage and transportation conditions. Such capabilities and facilities are not easily available globally.”
“The new hubs in Brussels and Johannesburg will ensure that our pharma & healthcare customers can fully rely on K+N to handle the specific challenges of integrity as well as provide end-to-end visibility and regulatory compliance along the logistics journey of their sensitive products. So, they can focus on the health and well-being of their patients; because this is what matters the most,” Ruud added.
