The International Freight and Logistics Network (IFLN), a global organization of freight forwarders and logistics companies headquartered in Houston, Texas, has taken another big step in its ambitious expansion program by launching an all-new IFLN Healthcare & Pharma network.
IFLN launched its IFLN Global Projects network in 2017, and the recent creation of the IFLN Healthcare & Pharma network is another example of its determination to meet the specialized needs of existing IFLN members as well as to attract other cargo agents that are active in specialized markets.
IFLN counts amongst its members numerous active and major players in the medical and pharmaceutical shipping business, and the new IFLN Healthcare & Pharma network represents, for customers, a united group of specialized healthcare and pharma logistics companies that offer global door-to-door services while complying to the strictest of pharma shipping requirements.
The network will utilize the expertise and local know-how found within its membership to the fullest extent. Its members and customers will benefit from IFLN Healthcare & Pharma network contacts and their partnerships with specialized cool-chain carriers, packaging providers, insurance providers, Customs bodies and regulatory compliance agencies.
IFLN president Michel Vanlerberghe explains that the need for this network is apparent in, “the continued expansion of the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry, especially in emerging markets, together with the increasing number of customers looking to control their costs and outsource their supply chain activities.
“Customers receive the dual benefits of international and local knowledge with the assurance that all country regulatory compliances and security requirements will be followed,” he adds.
And why is IFLN in such a good position to offer the market such a network? “We have a strong base of healthcare and pharma specialists in key markets,” Vanlerberghe points out. “Our network of independent healthcare and pharma specialists around the world has been knit together to ensure that IFLN's service is presented as a united entity offering tailor-made solutions backed by IFLN centralized, flexible and cohesive support to assist and market its members with global bids process and new business implementation.”
Highest quality
The new network contains and will henceforth welcome only those forwarders at the top of their trade in healthcare and pharma logistics. It is committed to ensuring quality in every aspect of the service offered by the network, and all members must at least meet the following qualifications:
- A minimum of two years’ proven experience in healthcare and pharma logistics
- Employ qualified staff as well as have suitable, well-resourced premises, warehouse/storage facilities and equipment
- Be EU Good Distribution Practice (GDP) or IATA Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical - Logistics (CEIV Pharma) certified, and they must maintain their certification through ongoing training programs
- Have a Quality Management System and applicable standard operating procedures (SOPs) in place (either ISO or comparable)
- Offer active and/or passive transport solutions
The pharma market is growing rapidly year on year, and the demands on those shipping medical and pharma products continue to get stricter. Shippers demand the services of logistics providers with proven expertise in this field and the combined experience, know-how and skill-set of the IFLN Healthcare & Pharma network can provide everything that they require for product integrity and shipping speed for these sensitive perishables.
IFLN’s members are counted among the freight forwarding industry’s leading cargo agents and are supported by networks of nearly 300 specialist freight companies in more than 100 countries around the globe.
