UPS Acquires European Healthcare Cold-Chain Logistics ProvidersUPS Acquires European Healthcare Cold-Chain Logistics Providers

The German acquisitions help expand UPS Healthcare’s global pharma cold-chain storage and transport network.

Lisette Hilton, Reporter and President

January 28, 2025

3 Min Read
Pharma cold chain storage
UPS

At a Glance

  • UPS expands healthcare cold-chain logistics in Europe, acquiring Frigo-Trans and BPL.
  • The deal addresses high demand for ultra-cold or cryogenic storage and cold chain temperatures.
  • UPS exec says end-to-end efficiency reduces product loss, enhances visibility, and better secures pharma deliveries.

UPS completed acquisitions of Germany-based healthcare cold-chain logistics firms, Frigo-Trans and its sister company BPL, which provide complex healthcare logistics solutions across Europe.

The move enhances the end-to-end capabilities available to UPS Healthcare’s pharmaceutical industry customers, who increasingly need temperature-controlled and time-critical logistics solutions globally, according to a January announcement.

“Frigo-Trans’ network includes temperature-controlled warehousing ranging from cryopreservation (-196°C) to ambient (+15° to +25°C) as well as Pan-European cold chain transportation. This combined with the logistics solutions brought by BPL’s time-critical freight forwarding capabilities further enhances UPS Healthcare solutions for customers in Europe,” according to the release.

In 2024, the global company announced it had invested more than €20 million, adding more than 200 temperature-controlled vehicles to its healthcare division fleet of about 1,100 cold chain vehicles worldwide. UPS Healthcare has doubled its global network of healthcare-compliant distribution space since 2020, with the company having more than 1.7 million square meters of space in 2023. Before these latest purchases, UPS Healthcare’s acquisitions of Bomi Group, MNX Global Logistics, and Chabas Sante fueled the company’s global cold chain capabilities.

Rising demand for lower temps.

The market for temperature-controlled transportation is getting colder and colder. The American Society of Health-system Pharmacists (ASHP) reported that the importance of cold chain expertise and capacity “was amplified by the development of COVID-19 vaccines that required a reliable cold chain — from the point of manufacture to the point of administration — at massive scale.”

The number of drugs approved requiring cold chain storage has increased over time, primarily due to approvals of new biologics and vaccines, including gene therapies and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. Adding to the complexity, ASHP said a growing number of advanced specialty therapies, such as antimicrobials, cell therapies, and gene therapies require ultra-frozen storage as low as -80°C or cryogenic storage as low as -196°C.

In Europe, which is home to Roche Holding, Sanofi (France), AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk, Merck Group, Allergan, and other large pharma companies, the 2025 pharmaceutical cold chain logistics market is estimated at $21.55 billion and is expected to reach $34.70 billion by 2030, at a compound annual growth rate of 10% from 2025 to 2030. About 80% of pharmaceutical products in Europe (today) require some form of temperature-controlled transportation, according to Mordor Intelligence.

 UPS exec cites end-to-end benefits.

“Frigo-Trans has a very important presence in everything that is connected to the cold chain,” Felipe Morgulis, president of UPS Healthcare Logistics and Distribution, told Packaging Digest. He cited the need for ever-colder temperature-controlled transport and warehousing. “We are seeing a lot of movement from packaging solutions to active cold chain for a certain temperature range — talking more about +2°C to +8°C and +15° to +25°C, so that is a very important aspect of the activities of Frigo-Trans. There are other activities related to the -20°C or -70°C that were extremely connected to the packaging materials.”

End-to-end solutions are better for big pharma and other clients, Morgulis explained, for their ability to provide higher visibility throughout the process; greater efficiency in reaching destinations; less likelihood of product loss (due to temperature variations); and less likelihood of supply chain disruption.

He pointed to the COVID vaccines, some of which required temperatures as low as -70°C, explaining that “the only way of guaranteeing -70°C in the last mile of distribution was through packaging solutions.”

Among those packaging solutions, Morgulis cited Envirotainer, a company focused on delivering active control of the temperatures in packaging products for temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical shipments. He also cited sustainability as another important aspect in temperature-controlled packaging including the use of reusable packaging options.

Frigo’s sister, the also-acquired BPL, is more focused on shipments from Europe to other countries. This includes critical deliveries for clinical trials or special products with specific lead times, which often involve air freight.

About the Author

Lisette Hilton

Reporter and President, Words Come Alive

Lisette Hilton loves covering medicine, health, wellness and fitness, and has been a reporter following her passion for more than 25 years.

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