As pharmaceutical supply chains gear up to face their biggest security challenge for a generation, the Transported Asset Protection Association (Tapa) is confident that the industry is ready to safely deliver the estimated 7-19 billion doses of the vaccine required to eradicate Covid-19 globally.
The supply chain security organisation’s members include more than half of the world’s top 25 pharmaceutical companies, says president and CEO, Thorsten Neumann.
“In terms of cargo security, the true cost of loss of a pharma cargo has been estimated to be between 5-7 times the value of the product because of the domino effect it creates, including wide-scale product recalls, to say nothing of the reputational damage to companies. Product losses are clearly the biggest threat, but contamination of pharma cargoes during a cargo crime – even if they are not actually stolen – can be just as damaging,” he adds.
With vaccine deliveries expected to begin as early as next month, the focus of all supply chain security stakeholders will be to avoid any disruption to the delivery process and to protect the integrity of vaccines on their way to patients. Tapa Emea says companies must leave no stone unturned in assessing the associated cargo security risks and requirements on a country-by-country basis because the threat of cargo theft is never far away.
“With a black market controlled by supply and demand, Organised Crime Groups (OCGs) will be very aware of the value of doses of the vaccine and are highly likely to be looking for ways to intercept supply chains to steal shipments, especially with such high volumes being distributed within a short timescale. If such losses do arise, the impact on the global community will be more far-reaching than the theft of a single shipment of vaccines. As we have already seen this year, with the high level of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) theft from supply chains, cargo thieves are very active in targeting Covid-related products. So, as industry, we must be ready,” Neumann adds.
Tapa members involved in vaccine distribution can use the Association’s cargo crime intelligence tools and industry standards to support their in-house supply chain security programmes. Tapa’s Incident Information Service (IIS) allows members to see trends relating to recorded thefts of pharmaceutical cargoes by types of incident, location, product stolen and the modus operandi used by offenders. This helps companies avoid routing deliveries through cargo crime ‘hotspots.’ Companies using supply chains protected by Tapa Facility Security Requirements (FSR), Trucking Security Requirements (TSR) and Parking Security Requirements (PSR) certifications will also have robust measures in place for product storage and transportation, as well as for secure truck parking of loaded vehicles.
“Our cargo crime data already shows that even with the best efforts of industry, facilities storing and trucks delivering pharmaceuticals are targets for violent attacks, hijackings and robberies. This is why we expect to see an unprecedented supply chain security programme in place to protect deliveries of Covid vaccines, which may include the use of armed escorts, additional truck security, and driving in secure convoys, depending on the level of risk in each geography. Some countries may even be considering military support to ensure vaccine deliveries are not delayed in any way.”
