According to Technavio market report, the global cold chain logistics market size for the pharmaceuticals industry has the potential to grow by USD 9.48 billion during 2020-24, and the market’s growth momentum will accelerate during the forecast period.
The cold chain logistics market is fragmented. Established logistics vendors are using market consolidation as a strategic tool for business expansion. This inorganic growth strategy will also help them in adopting local or regional technologies from regional players and expanding their market presence and attaining profitability in the competitive market. Although the growth in demand for reefer containers from the pharmaceutical industry will offer immense growth opportunities, functional barriers in cold chain logistics increase operational costs will challenge the growth of the market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.
APAC was the largest cold chain logistics market for the pharmaceuticals industry in 2019, and the region will offer several growth opportunities to market vendors during the forecast period. The significant growth of the consumer healthcare market enhanced healthcare facilities, and rising investments by governments and NGOs to improve public health standards are driving the cold chain logistics market growth for the pharmaceuticals industry.
Over 44 per cent of the market’s growth will originate from APAC during the forecast period. China is the key market for cold chain logistics services for the pharmaceutical industry in APAC. Market growth in this region will be faster than the growth of the market in other regions.
Cold chain logistics plays a vital role in the pharmaceuticals industry. The industry requires refrigerated warehousing services for temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical products such as chemical drugs, insulin, vaccines, and biopharma reagents. The growing pharmaceutical industry will drive the demand for refrigerated warehousing of pharmaceutical products. The vendors are also offering value-added services (VAS) such as loading and unloading, inventory management tools, and other supply chain-related services to their clients.
Cold Chain Market for Pharma Industry
The rising need to transport temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals is driving the sales of reefer containers, which, in turn, is fuelling the cold chain logistics market share growth. Inside reefer containers, the air is uniformly distributed through a specific T-shaped decking, which is essential to maintain the physical and chemical composition of the pharmaceutical products. Moreover, the movement of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical products from their storage supply to the required destination requires highlevel coordination in the supply chain. To increase the efficiency and productivity by reducing the number of round trips made by reefer containers, an estimated 55,000 40-feet reefer containers are expected to be added to the global fleet by 2020.
• The increased use of technology and the IoT is extending various benefits such as a reduction in operating costs .
• Vendors are offering tools and techniques for automating several warehouse business process areas.
• The IoT solution involves the use of sensors and robotic systems in warehouse facilities.
• Analytics tools are used to process data in the most productive, efficient, convenient, and safe ways.
• About 55 per cent of the cost incurred in the cold chain warehousing is due to refrigeration. Therefore, the use of battery-driven or fuel cells-based forklifts, AGVs, and automated conveyor belts will save refrigeration costs.
• The global cold chain logistics market will grow at a CAGR of over 10 per cent during 2020-24.
