Korean Air’s cargo division has signed up to use SkyCell’s hybrid containers as the airline looks to deliver life-saving pharmaceuticals and vaccines worldwide in a sustainable way.

The partnership follows SkyCell’s recent launch of a service centre in Seoul and the appointment of Charlie Cho as business development director for Korea on 1 January.

“We were attracted to the fact that SkyCell has recently opened a new station in Seoul, and that its sustainable and self-recharging hybrid containers are in line with our green management policy,” said Jae Dong Eum, senior vice president and head of cargo business division at Korean Air.

“Through this agreement, we are pleased to expand our service offering to the pharma industry with SkyCell’s hybrid containers and provide our clients with a safe and sustainable solution to protect sensitive products,” he added.

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SkyCell said this partnership comes at a crucial point with the increase in demand for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments this year.

“Cold-chain maintenance for vaccine transportation is a significant challenge for the global logistics industry, and together SkyCell and Korean Air ensure these lifesaving medicines reach patients timely and in pristine condition,” the press release stated.

SkyCell pointed out that the pharmaceutical industry in South Korea has seen rapid growth over the last five years, growing at around 7 percent each year, whilst exports of pharmaceuticals climbed 11.2 percent last year to over $5 billion.

“As we navigate this difficult time together we are committed to helping our partners achieve their goals, and ensure these vital medicines are transported in a safe and timely manner,” said Chiara Venuti, director of business development and head of airline partnerships at SkyCell.

“When shipping vital pharmaceutical products, there is no room for error, and we are happy to support Korean Air to ship pharmaceuticals in a sustainable way,” she added.

SkyCell’s highly innovative hybrid containers allow pharma companies to optimise supply chains using data to predict and control risk. Using over three-quarters of a billion data points on factors like temperature, location, and time, it enables a market-leading and audited failure rate of less than 0.1 percent, whilst reducing CO2 emissions by almost half, the release added.