Valery Janet Camarena Cangalaya, Cold Supply Chains and COVID-19, 28/04/2022

INTEGRATED CASE STUDY: Cold Supply Chains and the COVID-19 vaccine

1. 1. (a) What is the supply chain problem that world healthcare systems have to address with
respect to distributing COVID-19 vaccines? (b) What is a cold chain supply chain, what are its
elements and what industries and products is it typically used for? (c) What capabilities are
necessary to operate a successful cold chain supply chain?

a. The potential problems that world healthcare systems must deal with are:
i. National security issues: Informality is something that will be present throughout
the vaccination process and it is of utmost importance that adequate control is
carried out to avoid the use of bad vaccines and commercialization on the black
market.
ii. Shortage of personnel: Everyone involved within the supply chain who comes into
contact with vaccines must be highly responsible and need to be healthy.
iii. Lack of coordination: There is a lack of communication between the state, the
government, the health entities, among others.
iv. Shortage of supplies: There is no much access to these raw materials for vaccine
kits, the lack of supplies will stop the scale production.
v. Limited capacity: The existing equipment to carry out the manufacture of vaccines
is limited which slows down the production and distribution of these.
vi. Vaccine damage: During the production process it is inevitable that some vaccines
will be discarded. Likewise, these can be damaged during transport or due to poor
conservation.
vii. Gaps for rural areas: Access to vaccines is somewhat complicated for the cities that
belong to the rural areas of the countries, which is why it is difficult to distribute the
vaccines there because they do not have the necessary equipment for the
preservation of the vaccines.
b. The cold chain involves the transportation of temperature-sensitive products along a supply
chain through thermal and refrigerated packaging methods and the logistical planning to
protect the integrity of these shipments. This kind of supply chain is needed by food
products and medicines. In addition to this, the main elements of a cold chain involve:

i. Cooling systems: Bringing commodities such as food to the appropriate

ii. Cold storage: Providing facilities for the storage of goods over a period of time,
either waiting to be ship to a distant market, at an intermediary location for
processing and distribution, and close to the market for distribution.
iii. Cold Transport: Having conveyances available to move goods while maintaining
stable temperature and humidity conditions as well as protecting their integrity.
iv. Cold processing and distribution:  Providing facilities for the transformation and
processing of goods as well as ensuring sanitary conditions. Consolidating and
deconsolidating loads (crates, boxes, pallets) for distribution.
c.
i. Conditional Demand
● Each product has a perishability level
● Shelf life and revenue
● Demand conditional to qualitative attributes
ii. Load Integrity
● Packing, Packaging and preparation
● Refers as the common load unit
● Empty backhauls
iii. Transport Integrity
● Uninterrupted integrity of transport chain
● Specialized modes and terminals.

2. What obstacles or challenges to distributing the vaccine will the vaccine producers, Logistics
providers and health authorities face to provide the vaccine to everyone? How can these problems
be overcome?

One of the main problems that you will have to deal with is the lack of supplies for the manufacture
of vaccines. Once the vaccination processes are accelerated it will be necessary to accelerate
production and this problem slows down production. Another particular problem will be being able to
distribute the vaccine proportionally throughout the world. It is quite common that within third world
countries everything is centered in the capital, so it should be a priority to deal with this issue in
order to decentralize the distribution of vaccines. Finally, informality and the black market is a
problem of which government authorities must be alert.

In the case of vaccine producers, it is necessary to establish greater communication with their
suppliers and reduce losses. On the other hand, to combat the issue of decentralization and the
Valery Janet Camarena Cangalaya, Cold Supply Chains and COVID-19, 28/04/2022

black market, it is absolutely necessary that the authorities, government entities and health entities
maintain honest and responsible communication throughout the process.

3. What issues and problems are authorities in Peru likely to experience in its COVID-19 vaccine
planning and supply chain? Explain each one you identify.

In the first place, it would be to combat the centralization that exists in the country. It is very
common that everything comes first to Lima and then continue with the rest of the cities. So, Peru’s
authorities need to be able to create a supply chain that can supply the country's provinces in the
same proportion as the capital. Second, to have the necessary personnel to be able to correctly
execute the vaccination process. In addition to this, health authorities must train and prepare such
personnel. Finally, to be able to satisfy the demand for vaccines in the country.

4. Why would demand forecasting not be a significant issue for the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain?

The demand forecast does not have to be a problem because an approximate amount of the
population of each country has always been known. This can be determined through the annual
censuses carried out in each region and also with the medical report of each country.