OPTEL VISION was there!
The Healthcare Distribution Management Association held its annual Track & Trace seminar in Baltimore, MD. on December 2009. All participants agreed that the event brought a great overview of the recent track & trace initiatives and, most importantly, of the steps to become a serialized manufacturer, distributor or retailer.
Seminar highlights included perspectives from the new FDA leadership on its initiatives to combat the threat of counterfeit drugs, the latest developments in federal and state legislation and regulations, the impact of technology choices on company operations and ways to develop value for track-and-trace technologies while achieving a high return on investment.
The audience appreciated the impressive quality of the presentations. From technical details provided by solution providers and standards organizations to implementation experiences shared by companies along the distribution chain, everyone put the emphasis that 2015 (California's pedigree fulfillment deadline) is not that far away. Indeed, the path to get serialized involves education, preparation (internally and externally with providers and distribution chain partners) and implementation. Peggy Staver from Pfizer could not be more clear: "When we look at what we [the industry] have accomplished during the past 5 years, it shows that we need to keep preparing immediately for the next 5 years".
The same level of urgency could be sensed through the speakers coming from the distribution industry. Ron Bone, from McKesson Corporation, explained that his company, like other distributors, have implemented an EPCIS e-Pedigree server and are ready and inclined to support companies on both sides of the supply chain. However, Mr. Bone gave the following warning: "We are willing and wanting to help our trading partners, but it has to be spread over the next 5 years. If companies think that they will get our support during the last 18 months [before 2015], I can tell you right now, that there will be no one in our industry capable or able with resources to make this happen."
The next major step in the US serialization implementation will be the highly anticipated guidance from the FDA in March 2010. As a solution provider for the packaging line, Optel Vision highly configurable systems are well suited to assist its partners in meeting the new challenges ahead.
Jean-Pierre Allard, Eng.
Product Manager
Serialization Solutions