At UPS, we have developed UPS Temperature True, a service that gives companies precise, measurable operating procedures backed by dedicated support, contingency plans for unexpected situations, and web-based tracking and reporting for our clients' temperature-sensitive products.

We also offer an innovative air freight container, the PharmaPort 360, which provides an unparalleled level of shipment monitoring and product protection for temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals such as vaccines and biologics. The PharmaPort 360 helps safeguard healthcare shipments in the supply chain by enabling near real-time monitoring and maintaining product temperatures even in extreme outside conditions. For example, products can be maintained within 2 degrees of a preset temperature of +5˚C for more than 100 hours.

To this end, UPS Proactive Response is sophisticated service that helps ensure that temperature-sensitive products are protected at every stage of their supply chain journey. We also have global "control towers," which track and monitor the condition of temperature-sensitive products as they move around the world to give customers real-time visibility and information.

During the entire phase of drug shipment, what are the most crucial stages and how challenging it could be?
UPS has always been a trusted partner of pharma companies, working with them to resolve and overcome various challenges along the way. Few common challenges we have observed that companies are most worried about, from manufacturing to delivery is compliance, ensuring product safety and integrity, Ensuring product safety and integrity, crossing borders, efficient distribution model and supply chain efficiency. spoilage is among the key concerns during shipment.

Spoilage impacts the customer in many ways, including time lost in getting the product to the patient, the cost of replacing the product, not to mention potential business impacts such as loss of market share and impact to the company's image. UPS's Temperature True and PharmaPort 360 are therefore some the many products and services offerings that ensure minimal spoilage, optimising safety and efficiency in the supply chain.

There is a growing challenge during the stage of crossing the border. This is particularly to companies looking to expand their operations overseas. In addition to regulatory requirements, ensuring trade compliance and seamless movement through customs has become more critical. UPS has a strong network in Asia to ensure that customs procedures and flow of goods are done smoothly and efficiently. We are always ahead of regulatory requirements and changes, meaning companies can focus on their core business activities while we keep them abreast of what they need to know when it comes to compliance.

Minimizing inventory holding and reducing obsolescence maintains a company's effectiveness to reaching or expanding to new markets. UPS works closely with companies to ensure that their product gets to the right patient at the most suitable time. We have multi-client distribution facilities, where we store and distribute products from multiple customers. This means that our customers can use, and pay for, only the distribution space they need at any given time, thus allowing them to ramp inventory up and down as needed.