Naqel to facilitate distribution of vaccines in KSA
Naqel Express, a logistics supply chain solutions provider in Saudi Arabia, has played a major role in the Saudi Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 mitigation efforts. During the onset of the pandemic at the start of the year, Naqel’s pharma division facilitated the transportation of virus samples from various healthcare service providers in the Kingdom to the testing labs. Besides, Naqel processed and cleared 13 air charters and 78 trailer loads of medical consignments for the Health Ministry.
The next phase of COVID-19 mitigation involves express transportation and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines from vaccine manufacturers around the world to the people in the Kingdom. Since 2018, Naqel has invested more than SR250 million ($66.7 million) in developing its temperature control logistics infrastructure, ranging from cold chain clearance to temperature control during the course of last-mile distribution.
“A successful vaccination program requires secure storage and safe and efficient distribution of vaccines. Our cold storage and distribution facilities are flexible, scalable, and tested to meet the requirements of the final mile customers,” said Fahad Al-Salhi, director, Pharma Business Solutions, Naqel Express.
Cold storage solutions
Facilities with temperature control solutions for vaccines have been set up at Naqel’s Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam airports with airside access and are working 24x7 with priority clearance for vaccine consignments. Moreover, Naqel has built capabilities to provide packaging solutions that maintain the temperature required for storing vaccines (-70 degrees Celsius and -20 degrees Celsius).
Cold chain distribution
Naqel has developed 20 distribution hubs and implemented 24x7 monitoring of both shipment movement and temperature levels across all its distribution hubs. The company has launched more than 300 temperature control vehicles in the Kingdom dedicated for vaccine distribution. The transportation infrastructure has been developed to reach and deliver any vaccine consignment within 24 hours to health care centers and individuals anywhere in the Kingdom, including the remotest locations.
Coordination centers
Naqel has set up coordination centers in the key source countries of Europe, the US and Asia, to coordinate the pickup and transportation of vaccine consignments to clearance points in Saudi Arabia. Besides, Naqel has worked jointly with German companies to develop cold chain storage solutions to meet the temperature requirements for the COVID-19 vaccination manufactured by Pfizer Inc.