Panalpina’s new logistics center in Singapore obtains GDP certification

After Bogotá in August, Panalpina has obtained another Good Distribution Practice (GDP) certification, this time for its new logistics center in Singapore, where many of the world’s top pharmaceutical companies have manufacturing facilities. The GDP quality assurance standard includes stringent requirements for the handling, storage and distribution of pharmaceuticals. The number of Panalpina locations globally with GDP certification now stands at 32.

The GDP certificate was issued by Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority (HSA) following a rigorous inspection. To be granted GDP certification in Singapore, companies must demonstrate compliance with HSA GDP guidelines, which are based on the most important global guidelines. With the new GDP certification, Panalpina is authorized to store, handle and distribute medicines in the local market and to ship them abroad on behalf of pharmaceutical companies.

“The pharmaceutical sector in Singapore has developed enormously since 2000 and the companies are increasingly outsourcing the logistics for their highly sensitive products,” says Gino Marzola, Panalpina’s managing director for Singapore and Malaysia. “Healthcare supply chains have a zero-fault tolerance, and the GDP certification for our brand-new facility demonstrates that we can meet that requirement. We also give pharmaceutical companies access to a global, quality distribution network for their products.”

The pharmaceutical sector is particularly important to Singapore. According to the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), eight of the top ten pharmaceutical companies have a presence in the city-state, manufacturing four of the top ten drugs by global revenue. In 2016, the sector produced more than S$16 billion worth of products for global markets.

Many pharmaceutical companies demand from third-party logistics providers (3PLs) that the business units that handle their products are certified according to Good Distribution Practice (GDP), a set of guidelines for the proper distribution of medicinal products for human use.

Panalpina realizes that maintaining product quality and safety of pharmaceuticals in the supply chain is highly critical. In line with this, the company has taken strong initiatives to exceed the expectations of healthcare customers. Today, Panalpina has a global coverage of GDP-compliant locations. 32 of the locations, the new logistics center in Singapore included, are GDP-certified and this number is on the increase.