The latest service offers customers more options to transport their healthcare shipments and ensures optimal handling of all cool-chain pharma products.
Qatar Airways Cargo has announced the relaunch of its Next Generation Pharma product to provide solutions for the transportation of pharmaceuticals and healthcare products.
The new and enhanced product, in line with the carrier’s VISION 2027 strategy, includes five sub-categories: Pharma Critical Advanced, Pharma Critical Passive, Pharma Advanced, Pharma Passive, and Pharma Care.
According to the national carrier, these categories provide a diverse range of solutions to transport healthcare shipments while ensuring optimal handling of all cool-chain pharma products transported on Qatar Airways Cargo flights.
Qatar Airways Cargo has invested heavily in bringing on board the best industry experts, equipment, and training to become an acknowledged carrier of choice for pharmaceutical products.
“In less than a decade, Qatar Airways Cargo has grown to become an acknowledged carrier of choice when it comes to pharmaceutical products,” says Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer of Cargo at Qatar Airways.
“Since we first launched our pharma service in 2014, we have invested heavily to bring on board the best industry experts, equipment, and training. We have also proactively involved ourselves in leading industry working groups to keep a finger on the pulse of this ever-evolving market.”
Active container milestone updates have also been introduced to inform customers of the status of their shipments moving within these containers, with updates sent to pre-configured email addresses inserted in the booking.
The airline has also introduced a two-tier system for its 90 approved pharma stations, providing more transparency to customers. Tier 1 stations offer both +2°C to +8°C & +15°C to +25°C temperature-controlled storage, while Tier 2 stations offer only one of the two categories of temperature-controlled storage, handle certain temperature-controlled containers, or have limited storage capacity.
However, the newly-launched project has been rolled out to selected locations only, and a global roll-out will take place over the course of this year, QA has announced.
Why does it matter?
Qatar Airways Cargo’s relaunch of its Next Generation Pharma product is a significant development in the transportation of pharmaceuticals and healthcare products. This move enhances the existing solutions for the transportation of different categories of pharmaceuticals and healthcare products, including animal healthcare items, offering customers a diverse range of options to meet their transport requirements.
For people involved in the healthcare industry in Qatar and beyond, this development means more efficient, safe, and reliable transportation of medical supplies and equipment, including temperature-sensitive medications.
The new two-tier system for its approved pharma stations provides more transparency to customers, allowing them to make informed decisions on which station to choose based on their specific requirements. The regular updates on the status of shipments in active containers give customers greater assurance and lead to a more agile and collaborative supply chain.
Qatar Airways’ enhanced safety for years
For decades, the airline has also been committed to animal health. The cargo offers solutions through its Pharma product to transport animal healthcare shipments in a safe and efficient manner, all within the customer’s sub-category of choice.
“With ‘Next Generation Pharma,’ we are working on evolving product offerings to meet new and anticipated industry needs, and focusing on digitalising processes and activities to increase transparency and provide more real-time information to customers,” said Miguel Rodríguez, Senior Manager of Cargo Products at Qatar Airways.
Last year, Qatar Airways Cargo transported over 84,000 tonnes of medical and healthcare shipments across its global network via Doha and its regional hubs in Europe. The airline achieved IATA CEIV Pharma certification in December 2020, confirming its industry-standard quality performance and handling.
Efforts have also been undertaken to approve dozens of different monitoring devices or data loggers used in the healthcare industry to be uplifted on the Qatar Airways fleet, with more to follow.