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Picture your medicine cabinet at home. Now open it. (If yours is like mine, it could use a lot of organization.)  Have you ever stopped to think about how those medicines and therapies arrived on your shelf? Specifically, I mean the path from how medicines go from manufacturer to being delivered safely to your local pharmacy, or even directly to your family. Well, if you could magically dive into your medicine cabinet and go behind the shelves, you might be surprised to find UPS at the heart of some fascinating and vital healthcare logistics.

Last fall, UPS launched a new air freight container called PharmaPort 360 specially designed for transporting very delicate, temperature-sensitive therapies and medicines like vaccines. A few days ago, UPS’s healthcare team satisfied some of my “behind the cabinet” curiosities and gave me a peak at one of their first logistical feats transporting this new container.

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In this first full week of fall, UPS rushed in cooler temperatures at the Cold Chain & Temperature Management conference in Philadelphia. (Yes, there’s a forum for everything.) At the conference we unveiled a “cool” new air freight container called PharmaPort^TM 360. Picture a pharmaceutical-grade flying refrigerator that safely keeps medicines like vaccines at the right temperature while being shipped. Well, this isn’t your everyday Frigidaire.

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UPS recently announced the results of its fourth annual Pain in the (Supply) Chain healthcare survey. Every year the survey gives us a chance to take the pulse of what’s keeping healthcare supply chain executives up at night.  With so many dynamic and complex changes happening in healthcare and the effects on supply chains, sometimes I wonder if these people are getting any sleep!

From pharmaceuticals edging toward the “patent cliff” and flooding the market with generics, to reform changes and mounting regulatory pressures, to the challenges of reaching patient populations in emerging markets – one thing is certain – change is the only constant in healthcare. At UPS, we have dedicated healthcare teams globally whose job it is to monitor these trends, but more importantly, address these challenges with customers and come up with solutions. So, whether it’s through our Pain in the Chain survey, our annual Healthcare Forum customer conference, or everyday talks with our customers, we’re constantly taking the temperature of healthcare supply chains.

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I know the first thing you probably think about when you hear the word “logistics” is a Broadway-worthy performance by thirty UPS-brown clad dancers in the streets of Chicago. No? Well, today UPS delivered just that by bringing a little fun to the Windy City and showing how much we ♥ Logistics. After a surprise entrance, the UPS dancers performed a number for the crowds at the Wrigley Building this morning, bringing to life our newly launched campaign: We ♥ Logistics. And, we couldn’t just let UPS be the center of attention. We canvassed the streets for brave Chicagoans to take the mic karaoke-style and sing to the tune of our new, catchy “That’s Logistics” song.  And folks didn’t disappoint. Ok, maybe a little incentive of some free gift items helped, but you can’t deny how much fun we had Chicago-style today. See the logistics in action on: www.facebook.com/ups.

So, I’m not sure you’ll be seeing us on tonight’s episode of Glee, but if they come calling, we’ll be ready! We have even more fun up our sleeves, so check back with us soon…

I came across an NPR Marketplace interview with Craig Carter, Journal of Supply Chain Management co-editor and professor at the University of Nevada. His take on business efficiency in lean times is a streamlined supply chain. It’s good for business, absolutely, but as Carter says, “at the end of the day, the objective of the supply chain is to provide the best combination of cost and service to the final consumer.” I couldn’t agree more with his customer-centric point of view.

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