Agility, a leading global logistics provider, has opened a Pharmaceutical Competence Centre in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

The dedicated facility will off er pharma companies world-class solutions and industry know-how in pharmaceutical and life sciences logistics, the company said.

The Agility Pharmaceutical Competence Center is managed by Agility experts trained in the benchmark Good Distribution Practice (GDP) standards developed by the World Health Organisation and European Union. Strict adherence to GDP standards ensures the integrity of pharmaceutical products during the entire distribution process, including the procurement, purchasing, storage, distribution, transportation, repackaging, relabeling, documentation and record-keeping stages.

Brazil is in the midst of major economic and healthcare reforms, making it vital for pharmaceutical companies to minimise risk to product integrity and reduce their operating costs. Agility’s Sao Paulo Pharmaceutical Competence Centre is “specially structured to meet the needs of Brazil’s pharma sector,” said Mohammed Esa, senior VP for global business development at Agility Global Integrated Logistics.

“It offers world-class expertise in development of temperature-controlled supply chains that ensure product integrity every step of the way. These companies know how important it is to establish procedures that are compliant wiThGDP standards and wiTheverchanging local, national and international regulations,” said Esa.

Agility operates Pharmaceutical Competence Centres in Basel, Dubai and Mumbai, as well as a network of specialised pharma offi ces across Europe.