On 2nd October 2017, Virgin Atlantic Cargo opened their new Pharma Zone at their facility at London Heathrow. The purpose of the Pharma Zone is to provide a fully segregated area for the handling and storage of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical products.
As the volume of pharmaceutical products being transported via air freight increases, airlines are becoming increasingly aware of the need to comply to strict regulations and guidelines to ensure that product safety and efficacy is maintained throughout transit. The Pharma Zone has been developed in conjunction with Delta Cargo, and alongside this development Virgin Atlantic Cargo are in the process of applying for a Wholesale Dealer Authorisation (WDA).
Our Work with Virgin Atlantic Cargo
ASC has been working with Virgin Atlantic Cargo over the past 18 months in order to assist in their work towards compliance and application for a WDA. Our work with Virgin Atlantic Cargo began by conducting the ‘ASC GDP Health Check’ on Virgin’s cargo operation and that of their Ground Handling Agents at London Heathrow, the Virgin Atlantic Cargo Hub, and Manchester. This was a thorough audit against EU Good Distribution Practice (GDP) Guidelines and Supply Chain Security.
Virgin then took the findings and conducted a CAPA plan to close the non-compliances. As part of the project, ASC has trained 60 key personal on our bespoke certified (GDP) training course which is designed for logisticians by logisticians. Whilst many other GDP courses focus on wholesale activities, we have developed a course that demonstrates how GDP is applicable in pharmaceutical logistics.
Feedback from our work with Virgin Atlantic Cargo
Rich Ellis (Manager, Products and Partnerships at Virgin Atlantic Cargo) gave us his feedback following the completion of our work with the team:
“ASC’s expert guidance has been invaluable in terms of performing a complete GDP Gap Analysis, and then providing assistance in working through this in our work towards obtaining a WDA. The training provided to staff from various departments has been excellent, and their flexibility allowed us to work with them to design a training program that was suitable to our needs.”
Henry Moran, Chief Operating Officer at ASC, was our project lead and has been working with Virgin Atlantic Cargo for the past 18 months:
Working with the Virgin Atlantic Cargo team on this project was a privilege. Their enthusiasm and passion to learn was second to none, which when combined with their excellent service offerings, made this project a complete success.
We are proud of the work we have done with Virgin Atlantic Cargo, and we look forward to continuing to support the team and to see their products and services to the Healthcare industry develop and prosper.
find out more about the pharma zone
The Pharma Zone has been created with the needs of temperature sensitive shipments in mind, and this is clear to see in the range of features integrated into its design. To find out more about the Pharma Zone, visit the Virgin Atlantic Cargo website, where all the key features of the facility are listed.
