Evolving patterns in cold chain logistics and technologies

Sharing expertise about logistic opportunities for material handling and boosting the capacity of warehouse automation, industry experts talk about advancements in cooling and movement tracking instruments and evolving patterns of smart logistics and warehouses.

A cold supply chain involves the logistical handling of temperature-sensitive products and pharmaceuticals at various endpoints during the chain. Global e-commerce sales grew from just 5 percent of retail sales earlier to around 20 percent today. With increasing volumes, robots are taking over warehouse jobs; hence they have a lot of space to change the warehouse scenario. Automation, mobile robots, and new skills adoption are emerging as new patterns for the supply chain.

The Indian cold chain logistics sector is expected to reach approx. $782 billion by 2030 from $202 billion a decade ago at a 14 percent CAGR due to an increase in refrigerated warehouses and pharmaceutical growth. The logistics tracking instruments and delivery software technologies evolve to handle all temperature-sensitive goods at transit points of shipments. The drones in supply chain management may enable the ‘zero-error’ warehouse. This may lead to data collection time savings of up to 50 to 80 percent, as per studies.

Untapped opportunities in the cold chain logistics
The market is fragmented in nature, with many small players. There is a clear shift towards multipurpose storage and value-added services covering end-to-end requirements. Gubba Kiran, CEO, Gubba Cold Storage, opines the untapped opportunities in Indian cold chain logistics are the foreign direct investment & enhancement of public-private relationships to fuel the industry’s growth. If looked at through the lens of technology, there is a lot of scope for development in this sector.

Taking a constructive view, Vikas Taneja, Business Chief, Cold Chain, Panasonic Life Solutions India categorically states, “To safely stock, preserve and distribute perishable products with minimal wastage we need a mature cold chain. Even though there is a lot of focus from the Government of India towards cold chain development and continuous improvement, the Indian cold chain industry can still be considered at a nascent stage since there are considerable gaps in existing infrastructure against the needs. Food waste is highly concerning due to the need for appropriate and effective cold storage.

If we see the wastage, the cold chain industry has much-untapped potential with future-ready technologies. From the perspective of wastage, Suunil Dabral, Senior Vice President & Business Head, Godrej Körber, states, “One of the major causes for food wastage is a lack of relevant infrastructure in the country followed by the lack of awareness.” The country’s 7500 cold stores cover only 11 percent of the country’s perishable produce. Hence, the Indian logistics sector has much to catch up on in the cold chain infrastructure. A large scope of different cooling processes is required to maintain the cold chain without any break with temperature logging and complete visibility, with the help of growing IoT-based modern cold chain ecosystems.

Talking about investing, Vikram Murthy, Director, Univac Environment Systems, mentions, “At the Core of the dilemma rests the unwillingness to invest deeply into Cold Chains – because private sector investors, local Government bodies and Cooperatives have not acted as a unified collective – due to uncertainties of regular local farm produce.”

Developed nations have perfected this chain to yield high incomes.
Sounding optimistic, Sunil says new opportunities are emerging around the last mile deliveries, i.e. delivering them fresh. This may include the various value-added services based on the delivery time duration for multiple customers. Vikas responded quickly, “Currently, the biggest challenge for quick online deliveries is to deliver small quantities on time while maintaining product integrity and quality. This needs efficient mid-mile and last-mile storage and delivery solutions.” Efficiency is required regarding running costs for climate-controlled storage and delivering the last mile.

Trends in cold chain monitoring
Sensors and data loggers are essential components of the sensory network of a cold chain. Various types of sensors, such as temperature sensors, humidity sensors, chemical indicators, and impact and tilt sensors are used in this network. Temperature sensors sense the temperature at a specific location within a cold room, freezer room, refrigerator, or freezer unit.

According to the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR), the demand for heat-sensitive health products such as drugs, vaccines, insulin, derived blood products, and oncology products is rising globally every year. Hence, the transportation of these drugs is the most critical phase in the cold chain due to the possibility of unforeseen environmental variations. Cold chain transportation is a temperature-controlled supply chain used in pharmaceuticals, healthcare, food & beverages, and chemicals. The increasing demand for temperature-sensitive drugs, rising demand for better food quality, surging need for reducing food wastage, and growing demand for generic drugs owing are anticipated to drive the market’s growth.

According to the Markets report, the global cold chain monitoring market is projected to reach USD 10.2 billion by 2026; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 16.6 percent from 2021 to 2026. The cold chain monitoring market for transport is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The growing focus on improving the supply chain efficiency of the fast-growing pharmaceuticals sector is also expected to contribute to the market’s growth. Data loggers are used throughout the cold chain to monitor the temperature of food, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and other temperature-sensitive products.

Automation and IoT-enabled technology.
Better control over assets in warehouses is achieved using automation and cold storage technologies. The demand for cold chain logistics in developing countries is a major opportunity for the market. Warehouse automation aids efficient storage space utilisation, reduces wear and tear, increases reliability, and reduces operating costs. Sunnil points out, in the past the degree of automation was a factor considered but now it is about the intelligence built in these machines to take calculated decisions based on predictive analysis which is backed by a large amount of data generated in any warehouse. “It will be worth an investment in incorporating IoT-based solutions for cold chain transformations”, says Sunnil.

Technology must drive the innovation of efficient refrigeration systems powered reliably by a grid and renewable energy hybrid. The Transport refrigeration systems must have communication and no fail cooling systems on board. Extending further, Vikram remarks, Phase change materials, efficient onboard batteries to power 24-hour refrigeration, EV transport, Scroll Based refrigeration systems – are each contributing to enhancing the reliability and efficiency of the heart of the cold chain – the refrigeration system. Moreover, cold storage owners should deploy IoT-enabled monitoring solutions like embedded sensors throughout the cold chain. These sensors collect data on environmental conditions and promptly send alerts via 4G/5G networks to ensure a coherent tracking network.

We have begun but have yet to master the radio frequency identification technology, infrared sensors, laser scanner information sensing equipment, modern communication technology, RFID and the IoT for Indian logistics, sums up Gubba.

Insights into future
With the shifting e-commerce market and rising demand for online food delivery services, the future of cold chain logistics appears promising. Green Value Chain Development, in its most basic form, seeks to improve the overall environmental sustainability of the entire chain by optimising linkages between players. The efficient management of cold chain transportation is essential for maintaining the integrity of the products being transported, for instance, the cold chain transportation of pharmaceuticals, many of which must be maintained at a specific temperature.

The high implementation cost of cold chain monitoring solutions is the primary factor restraining the market’s growth. The better control over assets in warehouses achieved using automation, and cold storage technologies and the demand for cold chain logistics in developing countries are anticipated to be the major opportunities for the market. The Cold Chain Industry is the singular and significant path that can assure quality, enhance food nutrition value, remove waste, and substantially multiply farmer income to become the catalyst for social transformation in India.

“Green Value Chain Development, in its most basic form, seeks to improve the overall environmental sustainability of the entire chain by optimising linkages between players.”
Gubba Kiran, CEO, Gubba Cold Storage Pvt. Ltd.

“If we see the wastage in the seafood segment – at least 30-40 percent- then the cold chain industry has a lot of untapped potentials with future-ready technologies.”
Suunil Dabral, Senior Vice President & Business, Head, Godrej Körber.

“We need a mature cold chain to safely stock, preserve and distribute perishable products with minimal wastage.”
Vikas Taneja, Business Chief, Cold Chain, Panasonic Life Solutions India.

“At the Core of the dilemma, rests the unwillingness to invest deeply in Cold Chains. However, developed nations have perfected
this chain to yield high incomes.”
Vikram Murthy, Director, Univac, Environment Systems Pvt. Ltd.

“With smart warehouse management system that is integrated with a digital cold chain platform, it is possible to supervise and
ensure real time updates and modification.”
Swarup Bose, Founder and CEO, Celcius.