Articles by Carlos Castro

In my last article, I mentioned that ambient profiles must be a true representation of the temperature a shipping container experiences during transit from origin to destination sites. Failure to capture realistic temperature conditions in the supply chain will create inefficiencies and increase the risk. In this second article I will describe how ambient profiles should be built and what...Full Article »

Weather has fascinated humans for thousands of years because it has a positive or negative affect in daily life (e.g. food supply in gathering, hunting, fishing, agriculture, traveling, etc.). Throughout history men have created explanations for these climatic events that were not only poorly forecasted but also misunderstood. The ancient Greeks for example, attributed these climatic changes to...Full Article »

This year is almost over and 2012 went by so quick but brought so many learning experiences for me. I was fortunate to attend and speak in few cold chain conferences (US, Brazil and China) where I not only learned more about the cold chain supply challenges in emerging markets but also shared and validated my ideas with many people working with emerging markets. I’d like to share with you...Full Article »

Last week I was in Sao Paulo, Brazil attending to the 6 th Pharma Logistics and Cold Chain Conference organized by IQPC. It was my first time attending this event and I did not know exactly what to expect but I was excited from the speakers and topics listed in the agenda. I was delighted and surprised with the quality of the event and I’d like to share my impressions for those of you who...Full Article »

Some of my readers sent me questions about my post on how the Dutch East India Company (VOC) not only used the synergy between packaging design and logistics but also established a symbiosis among the supply chain links to enhance the chain and asked me to expand on the synergy between packaging design and logistics and the symbiosis among the supply chain links. So I will discuss  the...Full Article »

I remember the terrestrial globe at home and the story about Christopher Columbus' voyage to find a new trading route to the Indies but he instead arrived to a new continent. I was too little to be concerned about trading routes or a new continent so my attention went to another part of the story, the common belief that the earth was flat with an abyss at the edge where monsters awaited for...Full Article »

My last posting covered a key logistics cost driver, airfreight, and how packaging design and selection can unlock savings in a cold chain supply. I was happy that some readers reached out to me to learn more about the difference between the gross and dimensional weights and unlocking savings. This feedback has motivated me to dedicate this posting to packaging and design for logistics in the...Full Article »

Which line is longer? That's easy, the one on the right Are you sure? Yes!!! ... doesn't the line on the right looks longer to you? Let's measure them.... source: www.eyetricks.com I ran and brought a ruler, measured the lines, and confirmed they have the same length. (...smiled...) But remained skeptical and strained my eyes ... wishing I could do the same to my logic. This optical...Full Article »

A person working in cold chain supply can learn from the old tale of the blind men and the elephant. In this tale, six blind men touch an elephant and by feeling a different part, but only one part, they learn what it is like. The blind man who feels a trunk says it is like a snake; the one who feels the tusk says it is like a spear; the one who feels the tail says it is like a rope; the one who...Full Article »

Missed Part I of The IATA Label - Will it Stick?  click here A label alone will not guarantee trained personnel to handle the cargo or is it a substitute for a program that supports GMP and GDP practices. Training programs and records, airport audits, facility inspections, a single SOP (among shipper, freight forwarders and airlines) and other tools will ensure the cargo is managed properly...Full Article »

It's been more than 2 months since the IATA (International Air Transport Association) announced (June 2012) the status change of the IATA Time and Temperature Sensitive Label from voluntary to mandatory with an effective date of July 1, 2012. The IATA label is to be affixed on the shipping containers to ensure the carriers handle the cargo within the temperature range expected by the...Full Article »