IIC Journal of Innovation 10th Edition | Page 50

Improving the Reliability and Security of Global Cold Chain Logistics factors such as vibration, gas composition, pressure and radiation. Most assets can be kept in standard atmospheric (i.e., ambient) conditions for a modest amount of time without suffering damage, but we cannot assume or rely on these kinds of gaps in the cold chain. different vaccines have varying sensitivities to heat and light. 3 There is not a single, perfect design for cold chain logistics to support all vaccines, so dynamic sensors and controls are critical. Many Handlers While we often need to control environmental parameters while manufacturing, storing and transporting assets to ensure the efficacy of the asset, it is unreasonable to spend far beyond the value of an asset. For food supply, general guidance is that logistics costs should not exceed 50% of the food cost. 2 Many parties handle a vaccine during its lifecycle. First, the vaccine must be synthesized in a lab. Next, the vaccine is collected for transport. Then, transportation may occur over long distances using multiple modes of transportation such as by land, sea or air. Finally, local delivery brings the vaccine to the person that will receive the pharmaceutical. This guideline is harder to apply to pharmaceuticals, as the costs may be known but the societal value becomes difficult to quantify. An ineffective vaccine might lead to a human death. Even worse, a patient that we think is inoculated but truly is still at risk can inadvertently become an infection vector to other patients. To add complexity, Across these stages, there is ambiguity regarding who did what, for how long, and to what effect. The advent and adoption of cloud computing has made it easier for each handler to write logs to databases and keep all interested parties advised of the status of the cold chain. 4 2 Ji, G. and Guo, R. (2009). Research on the security of cold-chain logistics. 2009 6th International Conference on Service Systems and Service Management. 3 WHO. (2014). Temperature Sensitivity of Vaccines. [online] Available at: https://www.who.int/immunization/programmes_systems/supply_chain/resources/VaccineStability_EN.pdf [Accessed 9 Jan. 2019]. 4 Li, X., Wang, Y. and Chen, X. (2011). Cold chain logistics system based on cloud computing. Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience, 24(17), pp.2138-2150. IIC Journal of Innovation - 46 -