World Courier beefs up presence

World Courier is expanding its presence on the mainland as the domestic pharmaceutical market is set to grow 25 per cent to more than US$50 billion this year.

The company will more than double the size of its drug storage depot in Beijing this year after opening its third mainland office in Guangzhou this month. The facility will expand from 1,027 square metres to cover an additional 3,000 square metres.

'The purpose-built depot provides a unique and proven one-stop logistical solution to biopharmaceutical companies with demanding clinical trial materials storage and distribution needs,' said Henning Voss, the firm's director for north Asia. The complex targets biopharmaceutical companies which want to store drugs at temperatures ranging from minus 70 degrees Celsius to 25 degrees.

Voss said the depot's customers 'are close to 100 per cent multinational pharmaceutical companies', although domestic companies also used the facility.

Outlining the importance of the storage complex, general manager Allen Yan said: 'Foreign pharmaceutical firms face a lengthy licensing and permitting process from mainland regulatory authorities to set up clinical trials and import medicines regardless of the size of the shipment. At the same time, storage facilities at hospitals and clinics may be far from ideal.

'The depot allows the companies to import in bulk and store the drugs in a temperature-controlled environment.'