AstraZeneca has selected Kuehne+Nagel to handle part of its exports of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical products from Europe to the rest of the world.

Under the new agreement, Kuehne+Nagel will supply a complete solution for the transportation by air and sea of products indicated for therapeutic categories including oncology and anaesthetics, as well as active pharmaceutical ingredients.

Kuehne+Nagel’s range of air- and seafreight solutions will meet the regulatory requirements for exports from AstraZeneca production sites in the UK, Sweden, France, Italy and Germany to further production sites and regional distribution centres in the Middle East, Japan, Africa and the US.

The pharmaceutical products, which are in both emulsion and solid form, must be maintained within a stipulated temperature range. In order to achieve this, Kuehne+Nagel has developed cold chain packaging solutions that will deliver product integrity and compliance in line with the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s Good Distribution Practice.

According to AstraZeneca’s global freight & logistics manager, James Shaw, Kuehne+Nagel was selected based on the pricing offered, the company’s culture and the speed with which the new way of working could be implemented. “I have been very pleased by the energy which Kuehne+Nagel have applied to cutting over the current arrangements and also proposing potential new solutions.”

Peter Ulber, chief executive of Kuehne+Nagel, North West Europe, added: “We are able to meet the challenges of this particular industry through innovation and investment in market-specific solutions, such as door-to-door cold chain solutions and packaging, while also offering our customer economies of scale due to our global reach.”