Reliable procurement and supply chain

Own material topic
Reliable procurement and supply chain

GRI 103-1
Explanation of the material topic and its boundary

Causes of the increasing supply bottlenecks include centralised manufacturing at just a few locations in the world as well as outages and quality problems in the value chain. As a leading fully integrated healthcare provider, Galenica depends on the ability of manufacturers to deliver. As a result, the reliable procurement and supply of medicines to the population are becoming increasingly important for Galenica. The challenges posed by the current COVID-19 pandemic have further reinforced the relevance of reliable procurement and a reliable supply chain.

GRI 103-2
The management approach and its components

Scheduling system and cooperation

Galenica works closely with suppliers to ensure the greatest possible availability of medicines. As a result of coordinated processes, the suppliers provide information about possible supply bottlenecks at an early stage. An IT-based scheduling system helps Galenica optimise its procurement and logistics processes.

Responding to critical bottlenecks in good time

The logistics companies of the Galenica Group review the inventory range in the pharmaceutical sector on a daily basis, enabling them to respond in good time to bottlenecks and increased demand. If critical bottlenecks occur or there is an increased demand for specific products, as was repeatedly the case in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19, logistics companies quickly change the way they work. The delivery of non-essential products, such as cosmetics or perfumes, is temporarily discontinued in order to guarantee the supply of essential products. In addition, the amount that each customer can order is reduced to prevent panic buying.

GRI 103-3
Evaluation of the management approach

• Key figures: key figures relating to the availability of medicines are collected on a daily basis to allow the Galenica companies to respond in good time to bottlenecks and increased demand.

Own indicator
Availability of medicinal products

Ensuring the availability of medicinal products represents a major global challenge and, of course, also affects the Swiss market. Over the last two years, COVID-19 has clearly shown how interruptions to the global supply chains have a negative impact on local availability. This makes it all the more important for the medicines that are or become available to be delivered to the service providers as quickly as possible. The Galenica logistics companies can make 99% of these medicines available throughout Switzerland within 24 hours and maintain the supply.