Emirates launches GDP-certified SkyPharma wing at DXB [VIDEO]

DUBAI – In an effort to capture a larger slice of the lucrative pharmaceutical market, Emirates SkyCargo inaugurated the SkyPharma wing of its new 11,000-square-meter extension at Dubai International Airport (DXB), suggesting that the carrier has long-term plans at the airport despite its recent move – and new facilities – to Dubai World Central (DWC) to the south.

In spite of the severe desert heat, the new facility at DXB includes 4,000 square meters of temperature-controlled space dedicated to pharma life sciences cargo. Emirates SkyCargo can now ensure that shipments requiring strict temperature control between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius and 15 to 25 degrees Celsius can be maintained. The new building also has 88 climate-controlled individual positions in the automated unit load device (ULD) handling system, plus five temperature-controlled acceptance and delivery truck docks.

To ensure quality control, the UAE-based carrier also announced that it had been awarded certification for the EU’s Good Distribution Practice guidelines (GDP).

During the event Emirates, Nabil Sultan, Emirates’ divisional vice president of cargo, said that the majority of international pharma cargo traffic moves between Asia, Europe and the United States, with India-U.S. trade alone accounting for some 30 percent. The new facility is part of Emirates’ bid for this transit business with extensive facilities, routes, positioning at a nexus of this trade and now certification.

Emirates said it chose the GDP certification over IATA’s CEIV cert program and other assurances of standards after consulting its customer base, which favored the former certification.

Below is a demonstration of a pallet loading system at the new SkyPharma wing at DXB:

inauguration of new #Emirates SkyCargo #pharma facility at DXB #Dubai pic.twitter.com/vDzqDH8Ldx

— Air Cargo World (@ACWmagazine) September 18, 2016