Multimodal logistics solution for blood services organization

Published on: Dec 18, 2023

Summary

In January 2023, the former freight forwarding partner of a major blood services organization gave notification of its intention to discontinue service for the U.S. blood banking industry, leaving the humanitarian institution with only 30 days to get up and running with a new logistics provider. AIT’s newly launched Critical Solutions Group not only filled the gap, but also delivered a nimble, point-to-point solution with an on-time delivery rate that exceeds the industry average. 
 

CHALLENGE: High-frequency, critical deliveries on extremely tight timelines  

Each day, the customer collects more than 10,000 blood donations to meet patients' needs nationwide. After the organization collects a donation at one of its U.S. locations, a sample must be shipped to a laboratory for evaluation. Once approved, products are delivered directly to patients (for certain cell treatment therapies only), customer facilities (for distribution to hospitals and clinics), and U.S. territories in the Pacific Basin. These shipments must be delivered within strict expiration windows, some as narrow as 24 hours.

Additionally, as many larger metropolitan areas often take in more donations than necessary to sustain their region, the customer is constantly moving blood boxes to smaller markets in need, resulting in a high frequency of U.S. domestic shipments – seven days a week, multiple shipments a day. 

Finally, due to the nature of the cargo, policies require dedicated vehicles and prohibit consolidation. 
 

SOLUTION: Daily, point-to-point, multimodal service 

• Multiple air and ground services (next flight out, hot shot, etc.) 
• Two redundancy plans for every shipment
• White glove pickup and delivery
• Real-time shipment tracking

For each of the approximately 1,100 shipments coordinated each month with the customer’s blood supply product planning, inventory and order management teams, AIT provides fully conceptualized primary, secondary, and tertiary plans for customer review and approval. 

Providing round-the-clock coverage every day of the year, the logistics experts from the Critical Solutions Group apply decades of experience to orchestrate pickups from customer locations across the country. The shipments are delivered to airports for commercial or charter flights, most frequently to other regions in the United States, but sometimes to far-flung locations, like Guam or Pago Pago. Other times, dedicated hot-shot vehicles are used for transport to another customer location, hospital, clinic or patient, as required. 
 

The AIT Difference Makers

• Decades of blood logistics expertise 
• Transparent, upfront pricing
• Robust relationships with air, ground carriers
• Control tower staffed by dedicated blood logistics teammates
• Proactive communication and 24/7 operational support 365 days a year

 

RESULT: 

AIT’s highly tenured team continues to enable extremely quick turnaround for the customer.

Within the first 10 months of the project, AIT handled more than 30,000 blood boxes with an on-time delivery rate greater than the industry’s 98% average.

Now the sole logistics provider for the customer’s blood banking program, AIT is planning future projects with the customer, as well.