Fujitsu Limited, Logistics Knight Japan Co., Ltd. (LKJ), and Isuzu Motors Limited, announced that they will begin a joint pilot project in early November to build a platform for integrated management of pharmaceuticals across the entire logistics network, from manufacturing sites to final delivery destinations such as pharmacies and hospitals. The pilot project will focus on managing transportation quality and temperature control in pharmaceutical logistics. Additionally, it will see the implementation of joint transport and pallet-unit transport simulations aimed at improving logistics efficiency.
Specifically, the project will address three themes: (1) visualization of theoretical inventory values and transport/storage temperatures of pharmaceuticals throughout the entire logistics network in compliance with Japan’s Good Distribution Practice (GDP) guidelines for the proper distribution of pharmaceuticals, (2) joint transportation to improve logistics efficiency, and (3) verification of the effectiveness of introducing palletized transport to streamline operations.
The initiative aims to tackle some of the challenges currently faced by the logistics industry in Japan such as labor shortages and an aging workforce, leading to reduced transport capacity, increased transportation costs, and extended delivery lead times as well as unnecessary disposal of pharmaceutical products due to supply uncertainties, inventory imbalances, and strict temperature control issues.
This pilot project was jointly proposed by LKJ, Isuzu, and Fujitsu, along with TRANSTRON Inc. and Ridgelinez Limited, and was selected as the “Pharmaceutical Logistics Platform Project” under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)’s publicly solicited “Logistics Innovation Implementation Support Project.”
Roles of Each Company
● LKJ: Provision of specialized knowledge in pharmaceutical logistics.
● Isuzu: Provision of a fleet management system to acquire vehicle and operational information during transportation by utilizing the “GATEX” information platform, which delivers advanced management and support services.
● Fujitsu: Provision of elemental technologies such as data extraction, transformation, and access control for the logistics and commercial data platform built under the Cabinet Office’s Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) Second Phase Smart Logistics Services project, along with the Dynamic Supply Chain Management offering to realize resilient and flexible supply chains.
Going forward, LKJ, Isuzu, and Fujitsu will accelerate their efforts toward realizing a pharmaceutical logistics platform by enhancing data collaboration. This will ensure quality across the entire logistics network, reduce inventory waste, and resolve inventory imbalances, thereby contributing to logistics efficiency and stable pharmaceutical supply. The three companies will also collaborate with the Japanese government’s pharmaceutical working group.
LKJ aims to solve problems and optimize processes for all pharmaceutical logistics stakeholders (shippers, logistics operators, wholesalers, patients, and customers) from upstream to downstream, by expanding a robust and sustainable stable supply network that can function under any circumstances. It also aims to build a win-win system for the entire pharmaceutical logistics industry.
Isuzu will create new services that redefine “transport” for a new era by collaborating with various stakeholders across industries and enhancing the transport and delivery efficiency of carriers and shippers, based on its mid-term management plan “ISUZU Transformation – Growth to 2030 (IX).”
Fujitsu, under its Uvance business model, will promote the utilization of logistics data and accelerate inter-industry collaboration to realize resilient supply chains, contributing to a sustainable society and business growth.
