First of all, you
have to love the classical overtones.
Tom Grubb, manager, Cold Chain Strategy
at American Airlines, knows a lot about what he does, and like
any true devotee he loves his work and makes no secret of it!
“The air cargo cold chain
is like a symphony orchestra, with many performers playing in
harmony as a cohesive group.
“Seamlessly playing as one
not only demands professionals skilled in their respective instruments;
it is also requires that all participants read from the same score.
“In the pharmaceutical cold
chain, safely and effectively moving time- and temperature-sensitive
products means all stakeholders need to follow the same standards,
regulations, and best practices.”
Tom actually told us that a couple
years ago and it caught our attention. People who take joy in
their work touch us like that.
Fast forward to 2015 and Tom once
again assures that at AA Cargo, the heat is on cool chain solutions.
“American is poised for added
growth.
“We just opened a dedicated,
state-of-the-art Pharmaceutical & Healthcare handling facility
at the Philadelphia International Airport.
“The facility has significant
capacity for Controlled Room Temperature (CRT: +15°C to +25°C)
as well as a refrigerated cold room (COL: +2°C to +8°C).
CRT: +15°C to +25°C
“There is a dedicated active
container management (ACM) area with plug-in stations for up to
30 equivalent RKN electronic-type units and the facility has an
independent power backup system.
“American’s commitment
to cold chain is shown in the numerous enhancements we have made
to many of American’s facilities across our network.
“This is crucial to insure
we continue to meet and exceed the expectations of customers.
Active Container Management (ACM), Front Dock
Learning
Develops Significant Benefits
“American Airlines Cargo
has gained significant experience with temperature control, since
launching its “ExpediteTC° services over 5 years ago.
“We began with ground-up development
of our Active services and, after some experience with Active,
we developed our Passive service offering.
“We continue to invest in
our ExpediteTC° program in terms of process evaluation, program
features, and infrastructure—including implementation of
Controlled Room Temperature (CRT +15°C to +25°C) facilities
in key stations across our network.
“This also includes a brand
new, dedicated pharmaceutical & healthcare handling facility.
“We were one of the very first
air carriers to implement annual recurrent training for all our
employees responsible for temperature-controlled shipments and
this extends to our ground-handling partners.
“We are currently working
on new training tools this year to insure the very best cold chain
understanding for our employees.
“This way, they can provide
the very best service for our customers.
“Most importantly, when it
comes to temperature-sensitive programs, is understanding customer
needs and how their products change over time.
“In this way, we will continue
to update American’s solutions in order to meet customer
and product requirements.”
Tom
Terrific
As Manager of Cold Chain Strategy,
Grubb leads global time and temperature sensitive logistics services
for American Airlines Cargo. A 23-year veteran of American’s
Cargo division, Grubb previously served in Operations as manager
of Customer Service Strategy, where he was pivotal in the development
of American’s Active and Passive cold chain services, ExpediteTC.
During his tenure with American Airlines Cargo, he has implemented
strategic sales initiatives as well as operational solutions for
American’s product and services portfolio.
Mr. Grubb is currently a member
of the IATA Time and Temperature Task Force (TTTF).
Today & Tomorrow
“American continues to see
solid growth of our temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical and healthcare
business in 2014. Product complexities, as well as increasingly
stringent regulatory requirements, contribute to the growing need
for specialized supply chain solutions, which keep medicines safe
and effective for patients.
“American’s temperature-controlled
solution provides the features desired by customers and we continue
to enhance and evolve the program with added benefits, which pharmaceutical
manufacturers and freight forwarders indicate are requisite for
properly handling these materials.
“Our vast network capability
is coupled with the robust and reliable processes built into ExpediteTC°,
which are designed to protect delicate healthcare shipments.
“This is complemented by the
recent roll-out of the ExpediteTC° process across the American
Airlines’ extended network following our merger with US
Airways. Philadelphia, for example, is a prime location in the
heart of the U.S. pharmaceutical corridor which, when coupled
with the world’s largest airline, provides temperature-controlled
cargo capability to/from Europe, Latin America, and the Pacific.
“Our ExpediteTC program is
designed strictly for the pharma and healthcare sectors.
“This is critical given the
regulatory requirements for separation of pharmaceuticals and
foodstuffs to avoid cross-contamination. That said, American also
has an excellent perishables program which can certainly assist
any customers with their flowers, produce, fish, etc.”
Cool-Chain Closer Look
“As an industry, I think we
are all working very diligently to address the concerns with all
modes of transportation.
“Given that airport operational
environments can be very challenging, it is critical that solutions
like ExpediteTC° are implemented, evaluated from a quality
perspective, and refined to insure maximum protection for these
delicate products.
“Pharmaceutical manufacturers,
forwarders, air carriers, and all members of the temperature-controlled
supply chain must address these requirements by working together.
“In addition to the needed
training, processes, and infrastructure, a key imperative is that
all supply chain participants need to be informed and aware of
as well as adapt to changing temperature-sensitive regulations,
particularly due to the fact that pharmaceutical distribution
standards are not universal.
“As an example, the EU’s
Good Distribution Practices (GDP) quality assurance guidelines
have certainly been the focus of much discussion in the past few
years, but so too are the regulations from U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP),
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the UK’s
Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), etc.
as examples.
“Each of these can have differing
perspectives and this also extends to individual countries’
customs authorities. It is these complexities which are helping
to drive growth and rapid change in the temperature-controlled
supply chain, as well as the need for enhanced collaboration between
all participants.”
Talking containers here wondering
if you are thinking as a former ops guy about cool-chain containers
of today and tomorrow? What for example does the pharma container
do today and what looking ahead do you think will be the container
of tomorrow?
The newer, electronic units of today
are easier to maintain, rechargeable, maintain more accurate temperature
ranges, etc. as compared to the dry ice variants developed in
the late 1990s which are still in use today. With the tighter
restrictions on temperature control, I would expect you will see
vendors working on continuing improvement of accurate temperature
maintenance capabilities but also perhaps the reduction in the
size/weight of these mechanisms, technology permitting. Currently,
the systems required are not small and therefore take up payload
capacity. Perhaps in the future, these mechanisms can be reduced
in size and enable better temp control with less weight and bulk.
Also, the ability to have more “real-time”
communication with the units including product temperature and
unit status is becoming much more desirable as delicate products
move through the supply chain. This is happening today but still
there is much room for added capabilities as monitoring requirements
increase.
Geoffrey/Flossie
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