Saving nearly 4.1 million kg of CO₂ in vaccine deliveries for the Brazilian Government

Three successful vaccine shipments to the Brazilian Government saved a total of close to 4.1 million kilograms of CO₂, setting out a model framework for how future Government-ordered deliveries should take place.

 

The hybrid’s lightweight hardware, combined with its independent self-charge function, saves up to 50% of CO₂ per shipment — and it is in heavy-weight shipments such as these that we really see the positive results the hybrid has on our planet.

The successful first vaccine charter test

The first charter plane took off from Frankfurt with 4 million Meningitis C vaccine doses, ready to travel towards Belo Horizonte, where they were to be received for Brazil’s National Immunization Program of the Ministry of Health for the vaccination of children. After a shortage of vaccinations due to the pandemic’s lockdown of air travel, this was a delivery with no room for failure.

Thanks to the long independent run time of SkyCell’s hybrid pharmaceutical containers, there was no need to find plug sockets or seek storage in a cool room to maintain the right temperature for the vaccines. In total, 62 of SkyCell’s 2500C and 1500C hybrid containers carried 123 pallets of this temperature-sensitive medicine, and the joint efforts between Lufthansa, DHL and SkyCell led to the medicine arriving fully-functioning and ready for use in Brazil.

 

A scalable sustainable approach

The decision to transport the vaccines with SkyCell’s hybrid containers for these shipments has meant patients received their essential medicine while reducing the impact on our environment. The hybrid’s lightweight hardware, combined with the fact it can self-charge without the need for an external power source, saves up to 50% of CO₂, according to an intensive audit by myclimate. Overall, these three shipments saved close to 4.1 million kg of CO₂.

Through collaboration with partners, and the deployment of a safe and sustainable delivery solution, we have begun the development of a sustainable model for the distribution of future Covid-19 vaccines and, in the meantime, we have saved many lives by delivering millions of fully-functioning and vital vaccinations.

DHL Global Forwarding continues to work on the right solutions for our customers, every single day, for any industrial sector. For the Life & Sciences sector, we build on new technologies and solutions, with all our competence, without any disruption for our customers’ supply chain.

The second delivery paves the way

After the great triumph of the first delivery, Cargolux and DHL coordinated a second delivery 3.3 million doses of vaccines between Milan and Belo Horizonte. This operation was supported by SkyCell Transport Planner, which simulates shipment scenarios and enables us to have a proactive approach prior to shipping pharmaceutical products. After the optimal route for the 65 SkyCell containers was found, the 127 pallets of vaccines were safely delivered.

 

The third seal of approval

Following the smooth deployment of two consecutive vaccine deliveries using hybrid hardware, which operated with zero temperature excursions, the vaccine manufacturers decided to operate a third charter with 65 SkyCell containers. After this third charter, the number of doses transported to Brazil in SkyCell containers now reached 8.8 million.