Kuehne+Nagel is meeting the increasing demands of the healthcare sector by providing more sustainable and cost-effective supply chain solutions, crucial for maintaining precise temperature control and timely deliveries.
Their cross-dock concept involves loading and unloading sea freight temperature-controlled containers at GxP-compliant warehouses located near ocean ports. This setup enables efficient container management with quick returns of empty containers to the port.
At these temperature-controlled facilities, containers are sorted and optimized for road transport to their final destinations. This approach minimizes container usage and reduces detention charges by ensuring fast container turnaround.
“Cross-docking optimizes the time that products spend in transit, streamlines the handling process, and reduces costs and CO2 emissions,” stated Jeff Garcia, Industry Champion Healthcare for Kuehne+Nagel.
Kuehne+Nagel said it has expanded its network of cross-dock facilities, which now includes warehouses in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania), Atlanta (Georgia), Wilmington (North Carolina) and Los Angeles, California.
An additional four locations across the country are anticipated to open in 2024. All facilities offer multiple temperature ranges and comply with Kuehne+Nagel’s HealthChain certification, ensuring adherence to the highest global standards for transporting, handling, and storing healthcare products.
“We began this concept as a pilot program with a large, global human and animal health customer for their animal health division at one warehouse, resulting in a double-digit savings of costs in the container inbound process and cutting CO2 emissions by nearly half. Based on this success, we are proud to be expanding this offering to the healthcare market across the United States,” added Jeff Garcia.
