UPS service will target pharma customers

UPS service will target pharma customers UPS said it has expanded capability to manage the shipment of temperature-sensitive medical items, including around-the-clock intervention when necessary to utilize refrigeration or replenish dry ice to protect product quality.
   The company said it was targeting pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device industries, particularly global clinical trials, by facilitating the quick movement of test medicines, specimens, supplies, testing kits and accompanying documents to locations worldwide.
   It said its “UPS Proactive Response” service will provide around-the-clock attention to help ensure product integrity and is available in 72 countries. It includes dry ice replenishment or refrigeration at select air gateway facilities and intervention in the event of unexpected delays.
   In a related development, UPS Supply Chain Solutions broke ground last week on a new 215,000-square-foot health care distribution facility in Roermond, The Netherlands, which will open in the spring of 2009. It will provide health care customers with compliance tools and customized inventory management along with temperature-sensitive storage and quality assurance services to link with UPS’s European and global freight and express package networks.