Pharmaceutical distribution logistics is one of the most mature sectors in the industry, where there is also a high level of automation to ensure tight delivery times and very demanding service levels.
In order for medicines to be available, the presence of an intermediary is essential to handle the distribution logistics from various manufacturers and pharmaceutical laboratories to pharmacies and hospitals. As such, there are various operators and distribution companies responsible for the reception, storage, order preparation, and delivery of medicines and parapharmacy products, ensuring the population’s demand for medication is met.
The origin of Neptune as an industry need
Bidafarma is a leading wholesale pharmaceutical distribution cooperative that serves more than 10,000 pharmacies every day. It was formed through the merger of twelve cooperatives to better address the challenges of the national pharmaceutical sector. It was in one of these original cooperatives, COFARAN, where its engineering department contacted TORSA to leverage its technological development capabilities and expertise in order to create an image capture system capable of tracing the order preparation process in the pharmaceutical cooperative’s warehouse.
A key figure in the origin and development of the Neptune system was Emilio López, Bidafarma’s Engineering Manager, who worked closely with and advised TORSA’s engineering department on the needs the system had to meet. Once the system was developed and the first prototype installed at the Málaga warehouse, its benefits became immediately apparent, with a drastic reduction in the number of claims. Within just three months of its implementation, claims from members had already decreased by more than 70%.
Following the success achieved at the first warehouse, Bidafarma decided to implement the Neptune system in most of its warehouses, managing to offer a better service to its members while reducing both the number of claims received and the error rate in order preparation.
By installing a Neptune station at each point in the warehouse where the contents of the totes are modified and linking the graphical information with the data from the management software, Bidafarma was able to have a tool that allowed it to identify whether the claimed item was actually dispensed by the logistics centre, enabling corrective actions to be taken in each case.
Following the implementation of Neptune, Bidafarma’s claims handling department gained a tool to manage claims received from cooperative members, identifying possible errors in order preparation and optimising reverse logistics in the distribution of medicines.
Neptune enabled shipment quality to shift from being ensured to being managed.
These daily claims, which were previously settled by directly crediting the claimed items to the members, began to be managed thanks to the graphical records generated by Neptune, its integration with the cooperative’s ERP, and the web platform for claims management and production indicator analysis.
As a result, the investment made in implementing Neptune was recovered in less than six months, with Bidafarma itself considering the project a complete success.
“The Neptune system, developed by TORSA, has provided us with a simple and cost-effective claims management tool that has not only significantly reduced claims and order preparation errors, but has also helped improve our cooperative’s image. In many cases, our customers even call us to check order traceability using the system developed by TORSA.”
José Luis García, Industrial Systems Manager at Bidafarma:
