10 Vaccine Distribution Questions for Supply Chain Leaders
As the vaccination drive has increased worldwide, it has become more critical than ever to address supply chain distribution issues and facilitate solid platforms to support the process.
Leaders in the cold chain logistics< sector must deliver a simple yet reliable service that prioritizes patient care. To do so, they'll need to deal with vast amounts of data and implement cutting-edge technologies, putting their agility and resilience to the test.
The following are ten questions for supply chain leaders to address in order to strategize vaccine distribution in India effectively:
How flexible and efficient are your warehousing, stock management and handling ecosystem?
As a cold chain storage unit, you must ensure that your facilities are adequately suited to accommodate any demands made by the vaccine manufacturers in terms of storage, management, and distribution.
Can you handle all types of vaccines with different shelf life and temperature conditions?
As vaccines have varied shelf lives and temperature requirements, cold chain storage facilities must be equipped with the necessary equipment to accommodate the stipulations.
How capable is your Information Technology?
You ought to have reliable Information Technology in place that would allow your clients to manage their whole network in real-time, enabling them to use essential data and allowing collaboration and transparency across departments and organisations.
Do you have real-time shipment monitoring capabilities?
To avoid issues regarding loss of temperature control, end-to-end batch tracking, delays, theft, and route changes, a cold chain storage unit must have real-time shipment monitoring capabilities.
How prepared are you financially to deal with potential damages or other unforeseen circumstances?
It is critical to examine your insurance terms and ensure that you have adequate coverage for vaccine damage, theft, and associated liabilities.
Do you have the flexibility in your operations to distribute or redistribute allocated vaccinations to surge and rural areas?
Delivering vaccines on time to the remote corners of the country is one of the most challenging issues for cold chain logistics, and it is vital to be prepared to supply to the surge locations and rural areas on time.
Are you making the most of the technology available?
To enhance levels of cooperation, communications, and digitalization throughout our supply chain networks, you must leverage, integrate, and improve current technological infrastructure. ERP WMS integration will provide exceptional support with your inventory control, source planning, order fulfilment, and business information system.
How flexible are your logistics and transportation practices?
Your current logistics, distribution, and transportation processes must be streamlined and translated into actions to keep up with ever-changing vaccination needs and risks.
Have you deployed the most up-to-date operational and technological solutions for logistics and transportation?
Advanced operational and technological solutions, such as continuous temperature monitoring, should be deployed at a scalable level throughout your logistics and transportation supply chain networks.
Are your systems robust enough to redeploy vaccines across the country?
Even after the virus has subsided, cold chain logistics should be prepared to redeploy vaccinations and other commodities around the country if the need arises.
With so much data on the vaccine distribution supply chain being collected and available advanced systems, cold chain logistics can efficiently manage the process to make a difference. First, however, executives must take the necessary measures to make this happen.
