Cover Story
As a result, all companies involved in the pharmaceutical logistics chain must establish the technical framework to uniquely identify and continuously trace every
single drug package. Manufacturers will be required to
track every bottle, package, and container at every step.
Producing smaller quantities of “designer” drugs presents
unique challenges. Smaller batches require more frequent
lot changes, generating more frequent movements of both
product ingredients during production and the final products.
For example, instead of moving one pallet with 1,000 products a day, you would move five pallets, with 200 products
each, five times a day. At the same time, your system must be
able to record which product numbers you shipped, requiring
greater coordination than the industry has seen in the past.
In addition, the need to control temperatures during distribution poses unique challenges. Many newer-generation drugs require warehouses to handle them in
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February 2016