Solving COVID-19 Vaccine Shipment Challenges With Chill-Pak™
When COVID-19 arrived in the United States in March 2020, government agencies and several state health departments approached Chill-Pak™ seeking suitable vaccine shippers. Confronted with this pressing need to ship COVID-19 vaccines, Chill-Pak™ sought a new solution that could be implemented quickly, and at a lower cost than conventional solutions such as vacuum insulation panels. "When we manufacture coolers to ship the COVID-19 vaccine, we need to meet extreme temperature and duration requirements," says Stephen Foster, President and CEO at Chill-Pak. "COVID-19 vaccines can be very fragile and need to be kept at the temperature the manufacturer requires to maintain efficacy." The new shippers needed to maintain temperatures from -89 C to -70 C and extend the shipping cycle by 24 to 36 hours, while minimizing shock, vibration, and freight costs.