Four operations make up that work. On most shipments they run as one continuous handoff rather than four separate jobs: import and customs coordination, cold chain and controlled handling, warehousing and inventory, and last-mile delivery. Scope is set for each shipment based on what the product is, how it needs to be handled, and where it is going.
Import and customs coordination
Before a shipment can move anywhere, it has to clear entry into the destination market. We work directly with the customs broker and carrier engaged on each consignment to keep the paperwork complete and consistent: commercial invoice, packing list, and any product registration, permit, or license documentation the client's own regulatory team has already secured for the goods.
Once a shipment is in the system, we track its release status from arrival until it clears for delivery, and we keep the client's team informed if a hold, an examination, or a documentation gap threatens to delay product that may be time-sensitive or condition-sensitive. Avoiding avoidable delay on medical goods is the point of this coordination: a shipment held up on a paperwork mismatch is a shipment sitting outside the handling plan it was built for.
Cold chain and controlled handling
Diagnostics, laboratory reagents, and other temperature-sensitive healthcare product need continuity of condition, not just careful handling at the start and the end. We plan the handling requirement into the movement from the outset, so condition is held through each handover rather than something checked and corrected afterward.
This is enough of a distinct discipline that it gets its own page. Read the full page on cold chain and controlled handling, including how we treat handovers, documentation, and what happens when a shipment's condition is in question.
Warehousing and inventory
Most shipments do not move straight from arrival to end customer. They sit at a storage point for a period, sometimes days, sometimes longer, until the client's order or delivery schedule calls for them to move again. We keep devices, consumables, and controlled or cold-chain product in segregated storage, track stock at the batch and expiry level where that applies, and release product only against a confirmed order.
Read the full page on warehousing, inventory, and distribution for detail on receiving, storage, and release.
Last-mile delivery
Delivery into a hospital receiving dock is not the same job as delivery into a small clinic or a distributor's own warehouse, and we plan for the difference. Hospitals typically run narrow receiving windows and specific dock procedures, so deliveries there are scheduled and confirmed in advance rather than turning up unannounced. Clinics and laboratories are usually more flexible but still work on an appointment basis.
In-country distributors are a third case: rather than delivering to an end user, we hand the shipment to a distributor who runs its own onward delivery network to smaller accounts. Every delivery, regardless of destination type, is documented at the point of handover: what was delivered, in what condition, to whom, and when. If a scheduled delivery cannot be completed, whether because a receiving dock is unavailable or a consignee cannot take the shipment as planned, we hold the product and work with the client on rescheduling rather than leaving it in transit unresolved.
Working together
Each engagement starts with the client sharing what needs to move: product type, quantity, origin, any handling requirement, and the delivery destination and timing. From that, we put together a movement plan covering documentation, handling, storage if it is needed in between, and delivery scheduling. The plan is set before the shipment starts moving, not worked out along the way.
- Product type, quantity, and any special handling requirement identified up front
- Documentation reviewed against what the destination market requires for entry
- Handling and storage plan matched to the product, not applied generically
- Delivery scheduled and confirmed with the receiving party ahead of arrival