DHL Global Forwarding has expanded its Life Sciences & Healthcare (LSH) facility in Leipzig by approximately 2,500 square meters.

The centre is very close to Leipzig Airport and houses state-of-the-art equipment for storing and handling temperature-controlled pharmaceutical and medical products, such as vaccinations.

“Since the start of the pandemic, we have observed a strong increase in demand for pharmaceutical products and goods. Given the good news regarding the development of Covid-19 vaccinations, this demand is likely to increase even further in the coming months,” commented Tobias Schmidt, CEO DHL Global Forwarding in Germany.

“That is why we prepared for this scenario early on and put everything in place to be able to respond effectively and efficiently. Of course, we also benefit from the fact that DHL Global Forwarding Germany is already very experienced in handling and transporting temperature-controlled pharmaceutical shipments. We have a tight, state-of-the-art network that meets all the strict regulatory requirements in place.”

The previous transshipment and warehouse space of approximately 2,200 square meters in Leipzig was more than doubled when the expansion was completed in the last quarter of 2020.

The second warehouse covers more than 2,500 square meters and is divided into two temperature zones. In the larger zone comprising approximately 1,700 square meters, the temperature can be regulated between 15 and 25°C.

The smaller zone of around 850 square meters can be cooled down to 2-8°C. This allows pharmaceutical products to be stored at an appropriately cool temperature, to ensure their integrity.

Dry ice handling for passively cooled transport containers and handling of actively cooled transport containers are also part of the standard repertoire.