Uruguay’s Montevideo Free Airport has achieved IATA’s CEIV Pharma Certification.
The airport’s cargo operation has set itself up to resemble a third party logistics provider (3PL) offering a tax-exemption regime, multimodal transport, and primary and secondary packaging, all located within the airport free zone.

MVD Free Airport recently inaugurated the first module of its temperature controlled warehousing master plan and is currently working on the executive project of phase 2, as well as revamping its information systems to automate all data capturing and processing stages for real-time process mapping.

“The IATA CEIV Pharma Certification has made the organisation align itself behind a very challenging objective, and has truly been a learning experience,” says MVD Free Airport managing director Bruno Guella. “We are proud to achieve this certification and look forward to keep raising the bar in pharmaceutical distribution in Latin America.”

Last year, MVD Free Airport saw its pharma cargo in transit to other markets in South America grow 462 percent compared with 2016. Some global pharma companies have even started centralising purchase orders at MVD, allowing for smarter stock management and just-in-time replenishment based on having safety stocks for the entire region at MVD.

“Understanding the implications in the distribution of pharmaceutical products in the region, our entire organisational strategy is based first and foremost on a company culture that thinks ‘patient first’, and secondly, on taking the necessary steps in training, infrastructure development and information systems that allow for a total quality approach to our day-to day operations,” Guella continues.