Wyeth Pharmaceuticals CASE STUDY
Cold Chain Solutions for High Regulatory Environments
Great Valley, PA
The Challenge
Wyeth Pharmaceuticals needed to create a cold-chain distribution network for its FluMist influenza vaccine. The vaccine, delivered as a nasal spray mist (no-shot), must be frozen at the point of manufacture and kept at -22°F to remain stable. Due to strict regulatory requirements, Wyeth could not use existing distribution chain applications, not even ice cream storage.
They needed a fail-safe operation that could receive trucks loaded with pallets of frozen vaccine and keep them at -22°F through depalletizing, pick/pack, manifesting, and reloading for shipment to doctors’ offices and pharmacies throughout the country.
The Solution
KPI designed and implemented the most advanced cold-chain distribution operation in the world, solving Wyeth’s FluMist distribution problem.
- Freezer dock door system
- Pallet transport conveyors
- Freezer tunnels
- Custom airlocks
- Robotic pick and packing, all dressed in space-age parkas to protect from -22 temperatures Timers to control exposure to ”warm air” for compliance
- Warehouse Execution System (WES)
