Hactl first at airport to achieve GDP pharmaceuticals ranking
Cargo Archive Stories issue 232
Monday, 01 September 2014
Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals (Hactl) has become the first handling facility at the airport to achieve Good Distribution Practices (GDP) accreditation, bringing it in line with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) quality assurance guidelines for the handling of pharmaceuticals.
To meet the GDP guidelines, Hactl has enhanced the temperature-controlled zones in its SuperTerminal 1 facility, to accommodate pharmaceutical products requiring temperatures of 150C to 250C, 20C to 80C, and -150C to -250C; these zones are equipped with temperature mapping and 24-hour monitoring by trained operatives.
The company has also designated a fast-track “Golden Route” to ensure that all pharmaceutical cargo enjoys the fastest-possible transit between the apron and the handling areas. Hactl supervisors and corresponding managers have undergone professional GDP training on standards, operating procedures and quality issues. All pharmaceutical handling areas are now regularly cleaned and sanitised in accordance with GDP hygiene standards.
Miranda Kwan, deputy director of systems and services certification for SGS Hong Kong, which undertook Hactl’s GDP certification said: “Air cargo handling is an important activity in the supply-chain management of pharmaceutical products. We appreciate Hactl’s commitment to ensuring the quality and identity of pharmaceutical products during all aspects of the air cargo handling process.”
Added Hactl chief executive Mark Whitehead: “Hactl has a tradition of adopting all internationally recognised best practices in all aspects of its business.
“Given the growing importance of pharma traffic to the air freight industry, we see it as our duty to our customers to introduce the highest-possible standards for the handling of such cargo.”
Meanwhile Hactl has enhanced its security operations with the introduction of two electric vehicles to enable security staff to increase the frequency of patrols, and respond to any incidents more quickly.
Security for the massive SuperTerminal 1 facility – the largest single cargo terminal in the world – is a major task involving some 260 staff deployed in various duties, including perimeter and premises patrols and guards duties plus cargo scanning.
The environmentally friendly electric vehicles are limited to 15 kph for safety reasons, but still significantly reduce travel times around the giant 174,600 square metre site, which has a perimeter of 1,850 metres.
The vehicles are now used around the clock, and have proven a big hit with the company’s contract security staff, who view their introduction as further evidence of the company’s ongoing commitment to safety and security throughout its operations.
Andrew Sin, Hactl head of security said: “ The introduction of our mobile patrol vehicles has significantly increased our visible security presence throughout SuperTerminal1. We are making more efficient use of our patrol staff, speeding incident response and even improving our efficiency in dealing with related matters such as clamping of illegally parked vehicles.”
Hactl first at airport to achieve GDP pharmaceuticals ranking
Cargo Archive Stories issue 232
Monday, 01 September 2014
Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals (Hactl) has become the first handling facility at the airport to achieve Good Distribution Practices (GDP) accreditation, bringing it in line with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) quality assurance guidelines for the handling of pharmaceuticals.
To meet the GDP guidelines, Hactl has enhanced the temperature-controlled zones in its SuperTerminal 1 facility, to accommodate pharmaceutical products requiring temperatures of 150C to 250C, 20C to 80C, and -150C to -250C; these zones are equipped with temperature mapping and 24-hour monitoring by trained operatives.
The company has also designated a fast-track “Golden Route” to ensure that all pharmaceutical cargo enjoys the fastest-possible transit between the apron and the handling areas. Hactl supervisors and corresponding managers have undergone professional GDP training on standards, operating procedures and quality issues. All pharmaceutical handling areas are now regularly cleaned and sanitised in accordance with GDP hygiene standards.
Miranda Kwan, deputy director of systems and services certification for SGS Hong Kong, which undertook Hactl’s GDP certification said: “Air cargo handling is an important activity in the supply-chain management of pharmaceutical products. We appreciate Hactl’s commitment to ensuring the quality and identity of pharmaceutical products during all aspects of the air cargo handling process.”
Added Hactl chief executive Mark Whitehead: “Hactl has a tradition of adopting all internationally recognised best practices in all aspects of its business.
“Given the growing importance of pharma traffic to the air freight industry, we see it as our duty to our customers to introduce the highest-possible standards for the handling of such cargo.”
Meanwhile Hactl has enhanced its security operations with the introduction of two electric vehicles to enable security staff to increase the frequency of patrols, and respond to any incidents more quickly.
Security for the massive SuperTerminal 1 facility – the largest single cargo terminal in the world – is a major task involving some 260 staff deployed in various duties, including perimeter and premises patrols and guards duties plus cargo scanning.
The environmentally friendly electric vehicles are limited to 15 kph for safety reasons, but still significantly reduce travel times around the giant 174,600 square metre site, which has a perimeter of 1,850 metres.
The vehicles are now used around the clock, and have proven a big hit with the company’s contract security staff, who view their introduction as further evidence of the company’s ongoing commitment to safety and security throughout its operations.
Andrew Sin, Hactl head of security said: “ The introduction of our mobile patrol vehicles has significantly increased our visible security presence throughout SuperTerminal1. We are making more efficient use of our patrol staff, speeding incident response and even improving our efficiency in dealing with related matters such as clamping of illegally parked vehicles.”
