By entering the pharma certification program organized by Brussels Airport and IATA (International Air Transport Association) SDV Belgium is now fully equipped to handle and transport all pharmaceutical products that require an unbroken cold chain. This IATA certification demonstrates that SDV Belgium handles all pharmaceutical air freight shipments in accordance with the EU Good Distribution Practices guidelines.
“SDV is proud to announce this GDP certification as part of our company’s strategy to service its growing customer base in the healthcare & life science industry” says Peter Claessens – Sales Director for SDV Benelux. “Healthcare & Life science is one of SDV’s fastest growing business industry verticals, serving pharmaceutical companies, nuclear medicine sector and medical device manufacturers. Participating to the GDP certification program in Brussels has taken us another step forward”. Taking pharma handling to the next level The global pharmaceutical industry relies on the speed of air cargo for moving this high-value, temperature-sensitive cargo. Key to the whole process of shipping pharmaceuticals is keeping each and every shipment within the defined temperature parameters. Historically, there have been an enormous number of different regionally based regulations for the industry, but no global certification standards. That is why Brussels Airport entered into a partnership with IATA in order to fill the void by offering a global industry certification standard. Committed to take the pharma handling to a next level, SDV welcomed this ambitious initiative and eagerly joined the program. Partnership within the industry Thanks to this fruitful partnership, Brussels Airport is now the first airport community in the world where stakeholders are CEIV (Center of Excellence for independents validators) Pharma certified. IATA has worked closely with the pharmaceutical industry and Regulators in the creation of the CEIV Pharma program, which covers all aspects of time-sensitive and temperature-controlled cargo shipping, including effective cool chain management and risk mitigation. Today, SDV is one of the world’s top supply chain service providers for the healthcare, aid & relief industry and the business accounts for around 8% of the company’s revenues. Thanks to this acknowledgement, Brussels Airport as well as SDV consolidate their prominent position in the world and confirm their level of competence as leading transport hub in Europe.