With a strong focus on sustainability, these containers reduce a shipment’s carbon footprint by up to 50%
Investment in these containers will also enable the airline to support global vaccination logistic plans, once the COVID-19 vaccine is ready
DOHA, Qatar - Qatar Airways Cargo and SkyCell have signed an agreement to lease SkyCell containers. The addition of these temperature-controlled hybrid containers will provide the cargo carrier’s customers the choice of a wide range of containers in which to transport their pharmaceuticals across its extensive global network.
Qatar Airways’ Chief Officer Cargo, Mr. Guillaume Halleux, said: “The logistics around pharmaceutical transportation is complex and being at the forefront of time and temperature sensitive transportation, we understand the intricacies of a seamless cool chain. Through this agreement with SkyCell, we are glad to expand our container offering under QR Pharma and present customers with more options to transport their sensitive products. The hybrid container establishes an entirely new product offering for our clients that is both safe and sustainable for our businesses and the planet.”
Chiara Venuti, Director Business Development and Airline Partnerships at SkyCell said: “Qatar Airways Cargo is a leading air cargo carrier with a specialised pharmaceutical offering and an extensive network. The cooperation will meet the growing demand for hybrid containers as safe and sustainable pharma solutions for sensitive and critical drugs such as vaccines.”
All SkyCell containers are 100% recyclable, helping to eliminate landfill by preventing product waste and reduce a shipment’s carbon footprint by up to 50% due to their capability to charge independently of an external power supply, without the requirement of dry ice and manual intervention. SkyCell’s hybrid containers are IoT (‘Internet of Things’) enabled, meaning that their temperature conditions are monitored as they move around the globe to ensure temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals are protected even under extreme conditions. With their efficient insulation and cutting-edge cooling technology, the containers can maintain steady temperatures for up to 202 hours (8.4 days) and self-recharge automatically in a cooling chamber or reefer truck.
QR Pharma is Qatar Airways Cargo’s specialist product developed for pharmaceuticals and healthcare cargo. It offers both active solutions to maintain a consistent temperature throughout the transportation chain as well as passive solutions that handle products within a desired temperature band during all stages of the journey.
Sustainability is one of the key priorities on the cargo carrier’s agenda and an important chapter that is part of its ongoing We Qare project. The project is built on the four fundamental pillars of sustainability that include economic, social, cultural and environmental dimensions.
With the addition of SkyCell’s hybrid container to its existing range of pharma container offering, customers now have an extensive choice when deciding how to transport their pharmaceutical products. This option will also bring clients a step closer to meeting their sustainability goals, while maintaining high standards of safety for their pharmaceutical cargo.
The significant investments in these hybrid containers and cold chain management is part of the cargo carrier’s strategy and commitment to improving and enhancing its product offering for the benefit of the pharmaceutical industry globally. With these investments, the airline is also preparing to support the logistics around the global vaccination plans, once the COVID-19 vaccine is ready.
As an industry leader, the cargo carrier ensures the fastest transfer at Doha through its unique Quick Ramp Transfer (QRT). It is the only cargo carrier in the Middle East to offer refrigerated or ‘reefer’ truck services for ramp transfers at its home hub.
Qatar Airways Cargo has invested considerably in quality handling, infrastructure, facilities, people and procedures at each of its pharma stations, which span over 77 destinations, with the recent addition of Osaka (Japan), Campinas, Brazil (VCP), Santiago, Chile (SCL) and Bogotá, Colombia.
The cargo carrier’s QR Pharma volumes have grown by 14.5 percent in 2019 over 2018. This new partnership between SkyCell and QR Pharma has set in motion a new period of growth for its clients and the future of the pharmaceutical transport industry.
Notes to Editors:
About Qatar Airways:
A multiple award-winning airline, Qatar Airways was named ‘World’s Best Airline’ by the 2019 World Airline Awards, managed by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax. It was also named ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’, ‘World’s Best Business Class’ and ‘Best Business Class Seat’, in recognition of its ground-breaking Business Class experience, Qsuite. Qatar Airways is the only airline to have been awarded the coveted “Skytrax Airline of the Year” title, which is recognised as the pinnacle of excellence in the airline industry, five times.
Hamad International Airport (HIA), the airline’s home and hub, was recently ranked “Third Best Airport in the World”, among 550 airports worldwide, by the SKYTRAX World Airport Awards 2020. Rising from fourth position in 2019 to third in 2020, HIA has been steadily rising in the ‘World's Best Airports’ rankings since the start of its operations in 2014. In addition, HIA was voted the ‘Best Airport in the Middle East’ for the sixth year in a row and ‘Best Staff Service in the Middle East’ for the fifth year in a row.
Qsuite, a patented Qatar Airways product, features the industry’s first-ever double bed in Business Class, as well as privacy panels that stow away, allowing passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private room, a first of its kind in the industry.
Qatar Airways was the first Gulf carrier to join global airline alliance oneworld, enabling its passengers to benefit from more than 1,000 airports in more than 160 countries, with 14,250 daily departures.
Oryx One, Qatar Airways’ in-flight entertainment system offers passengers up to 4,000 entertainment options from the latest blockbuster movies, TV box sets, music, games and much more. Passengers flying on Qatar Airways flights served by its B787, B777, A350, A380, A319 and select A320 and A330 aircraft can also stay in touch with their friends and family around the world by using the award-winning airline’s on-board Wi-Fi and GSM service.
Qatar Airways proudly supports a range of exciting international and local initiatives dedicated to enriching the global community that it serves. Qatar Airways, the official FIFA partner, is the official sponsor of many top-level sporting events, including the FIFA 2022 World Cup, reflecting the values of sports as a means of bringing people together, something at the core of the airline’s own brand message - Going Places Together.
Qatar Airways Cargo, one of the world’s leading international air cargo carriers, serves more than 60 freighter destinations worldwide via its world-class Doha hub and also delivers freight to more than 160 key business and leisure destinations globally on more than 250 aircraft. The Qatar Airways Cargo fleet includes two Boeing 747-8 freighters, 21 Boeing 777 freighters and five Airbus A330 freighters.
Qatar Executive is the private jet charter division of Qatar Airways Group. Luxury jet services are available for worldwide charter on board the operator’s wholly-owned business jet fleet. Qatar Executive is the launch customer for Gulfstream’s G700, the world’s first commercial service operator of the Gulfstream G500 and largest commercial operator of the G650ER worldwide. Qatar Executive's service portfolio also includes aircraft management, maintenance and Fixed Based Operator services.
For further information, please contact:
Qatar Airways Group, Corporate Communications Department
Tel: +974 4022 2200