Temperature-Controlled Transports – Cold Chain Logistics 101

Vaccines, fresh fruit and vegetables, cut flowers or even sensitive orchestra instruments – and frozen products anyway: exact and constant temperatures are often required to ensure that certain goods reach their destination in perfect condition. This requires technical precision, careful handling, and seamless monitoring. Discover more about temperature-controlled transport.

Temperature-Controlled Logistics: Every Celsius Counts

Temperature-controlled transport keeps goods at a constant temperature throughout the supply chain to protect product quality. Temperature-controlled transport solutions are essential for certain industries to ensure the freshness and/or quality of sensitive goods. Special vehicles or containers are used to maintain a product-specific temperature inside. In addition, continuous monitoring and trained personnel ensure that the goods arrive at their destination in optimum condition.

Maintaining a certain temperature is often not enough. Humidity in particular, but also air pressure, can be additional factors in preserving the quality or effectiveness of the transported goods. Thus, many shipments require individual, tailor-made concepts rather than off-the-shelf temperature-controlled solutions. With DHL Freight Coldchain, we develop individual solutions for companies for temperature-controlled transport – certified according to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.

Typical Temperature-Controlled Transport Goods

When talking about temperature-controlled transport, two sectors immediately come to mind: the food and pharmaceutical industries. With sensitive medicines and perishable foods, even small temperature fluctuations can have serious consequences.

• Pharmaceuticals: Some medicines are relatively insensitive and often tolerate temperatures of up to 30 degrees Celsius, for example, without jeopardizing their efficacy. Then there are medicines that patients must keep in the refrigerator at home. When transporting such medical products, care must be taken to maintain a constant temperature at ambient or refrigerated level. And finally, there are pharmaceuticals whose effectiveness is immediately lost if they are exposed to certain temperatures, even for a short time. In some cases, -40 degrees Celsius is already too warm, for example with some vaccines. These vaccines must be transported under strict temperature conditions to keep them effective.
• Food: Fresh vegetables, fruit, dairy products, meat or fish quickly lose quality or spoil if the cold chain is interrupted. And, of course, frozen foods must be transported frozen. Efficient cold chain logistics also contributes to the sustainability of food: accurate temperature-controlled transport reduces food waste. And, as the world’s population grows and food resources become scarce in some regions, efficient cold chain logistics can also help to improve the basic supply of food.

Deep-Freeze Logistics: -60 Degrees Celsius and Less

The standard temperature requirements for fresh goods in the food sector are +2 to +8 degrees Celsius, for frozen goods typically -20 degrees Celsius. However, especially in pharmaceutical logistics, the lower end of the thermometer scale is far from being reached: -60, -70 degrees Celsius or even lower are required for the transport of some medications and vaccines. A well-known example is the mRNA vaccines against COVID-19.

Cold Chain Logistics Beyond the Food and Pharmaceutical Industries

Pharmaceuticals and food may be the most obvious practical examples, but many other products and goods are temperature-sensitive as well and require temperature-controlled care during transport, for example:

• Cut flowers
• Cosmetics
• Chemical products such as certain varnishes or paints
• Musical instruments, art objects, or museum exhibits
• Certain electronic devices or components
• Some dangerous goods
• Actually, they still belong to the food sector but are often neglected: food precursors. These include, for example, bacterial cultures for the dairy industry. Such precursors are often very temperature-sensitive and sometimes require the same care as highly sensitive vaccines.

It’s More than Just Refrigeration

So far, the main concern has been that the transported goods might become too warm. However, the opposite can also be the case. Certain oils or fats even have to be heated during transport.

Precious wooden instruments are a different matter entirely, but they also require a minimum temperature to prevent warping or cracking: about 17 to 21 degrees Celsius. But the most important factor is the humidity, which must not be too low for string instruments. The London Philharmonic Orchestra’s tour of Japan presented us at DHL Freight with such a transport challenge and was one of our highlights in 2024.

Advanced Technologies and Control Systems for Transport Safety

Efficient cooling and/or heating systems and temperature monitoring systems are the backbone of cold chain logistics. Regular maintenance of these systems is essential to meet not only our own standards as a reliable logistics service provider, but also regulatory requirements.

The vehicles for temperature-controlled transport have insulated cargo compartments, which are regulated by the vehicle’s own temperature control system to keep the temperature constant. Another option is special refrigerated containers with an integrated refrigeration system. There are interesting and innovative systems available, such as the reefer containers from SkyCell, a cooperation partner of DHL Freight for pharmaceutical shipments.

Seamless Monitoring for Immediate Action

Today’s measuring and control systems operate, for instance, on the basis of telematics and GPS or IoT (Internet of Things). Sensors installed in or on the cold storage facility transmit information about indoor and outdoor temperatures in real time. In addition to accurate measurements, immediate recognition of irregularities is important so that automatic corrections can be carried out quickly or the personnel can be alerted. In the event of a refrigeration failure in the cargo hold, for example, backups such as emergency cooling systems provide additional protection if they are activated in time. However, it is not only in the event of a failure that an immediate response is crucial: an increase in outside temperature may also require a response, e.g. a corresponding increase in cooling capacity.

Flexibility and rapid reaction are key to safe, temperature-controlled transport. And because sometimes it’s not just the temperature that’s important, some systems also monitor humidity and air pressure.

Data Exchange Increases Transparency in the Cold Chain

Modern monitoring technologies also improve transparency throughout the supply chain. All parties involved – consignors, consignees, and logistics service providers – can collaborate and make better decisions via web-based or, in the future, potentially blockchain-based data exchange. To this end, it is also important that all those involved, from the planning team to the staff in the driver’s cab, receive regular training to maintain the high quality standards.

Expert Cold Chain Logistics from DHL Freight

For companies in the life sciences sector, DHL Freight has developed DHL Freight Coldchain, a holistic logistics solution for temperature-controlled transport requirements. The international Europe-wide network covers temperature-sensitive shipments from +2 to +5 degrees Celsius and from +15 to +25 degrees. And for special needs that go beyond the standard temperatures and services, our experts will develop a tailor-made solution.

DHL Freight’s advanced temperature control and monitoring technology offers security and transparency, our team of experts ensures human competence, and our excellent infrastructure provides the ideal framework. DHL Freight Coldchain’s quality management system is ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified, guaranteeing maximum reliability, and all processes are also GDP-compliant. Moreover, DHL Freight Germany and DHL FoodLogistics are IFS certified.

DHL Freight Coldchain for Temperature-Controlled Transports

With the DHL Freight Coldchain network, we transport pharmaceuticals under strictly controlled conditions – GDP-compliant, fully monitored and ISO 9001 and 14001 certified. Our specialized team ensures the highest quality and a designated contact along the entire transport chain. You can rely on certified temperature control – throughout Europe.

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Conclusion: Technical Excellence and Human Expertise for Temperature Controlled Transport

In today’s business world, specialized transport solutions for temperature-sensitive products are more in demand than ever. At the same time, temperature-controlled transports ensure the supply of food and essential medicines. This makes temperature-controlled logistics not only a challenge. It is also a matter of responsibility.

To meet this responsibility and ensure the safety and quality of vital goods, state-of-the-art technologies for temperature monitoring, control, and correction are just as important as qualified personnel. DHL Freight stands for excellent operational service and innovative solutions for temperature-controlled transport with cutting edge technology and comprehensive know-how. Feel free to contact us and we will develop an efficient transport concept for your temperature-sensitive goods.