Rafed & Abu Dhabi Ports Work Together on UAE’s Largest Health & Medical Supplies Cold Store Distribution Centre

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 8 December 2020: Rafed, the recently established healthcare procurement company, and Abu Dhabi Ports, the region’s premier facilitator of logistics, transport, and trade, have signed a collaboration agreement to jointly launch the largest healthcare and medical supplies cold store distribution centre in the UAE. Both entities are part of ADQ, one of the region’s largest holding companies with a broad portfolio of major enterprises spanning key sectors of Abu Dhabi’s diversified economy.

Under the strategic collaboration agreement, Abu Dhabi Ports will deliver a state-of-the-art warehouse and inventory management solution for upstream, midstream and downstream operations as Rafed’s fourth-party logistics service provider. The new distribution centre will be the largest, most technologically advanced centre in the UAE. The partnership will provide stakeholders with streamlined services and synergies across multiple business areas, specifically enabling them to deliver pharmaceuticals, medical equipment and consumables across the local and regional supply chains.

Both Abu Dhabi Ports Group and Rafed are members of the Hope Consortium launched last week.  Spearheaded by the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, the consortium represents a public-private partnership and offers a complete supply chain solution to address vaccine transport, demand planning, sourcing, training, and digital technology infrastructure, and facilitate vaccine availability across the world.

Rashed Saif Al Qubaisi, Chief Executive Officer, Rafed, said: “Rafed’s first strategic partnership will prove pivotal in enhancing healthcare services across the emirates. As part of our strategy, we are creating a new business model that enhances the procurement process of the healthcare sector that is primed for future growth and deliver exceptional value, efficiency and quality.”

“Through ADQ’s extensive portfolio of world class assets, we are proud to partner with Abu Dhabi Ports, as one the leading and trusted entities in transport, trade and logistics service providers.”

Robert Sutton, Head of Logistics Cluster, Abu Dhabi Ports, said: “Rafed’s agreement with Abu Dhabi Ports as their sole provider of logistics services is a testament to our capabilities and expertise in efficiently managing end-to-end supply chain and associated value added services to support the healthcare sector across the country.”

“By being part of ADQ, we are able to leverage and enhance our capabilities to meet the demand of the public and private sector across multiple fields, ultimately supporting the group’s wider objectives.”

Abu Dhabi Ports recently announced its enhanced logistics capabilities for the storage and distribution of more than 70 million COVID-19 vaccines at its dedicated 19,000 square metres temperature-controlled warehouse facility in KIZAD (KIZAD). Certified by the Department of Health, the facility currently handles the G42 vaccines for the UAE vaccination program and already houses more than one million vials of the vaccine.

The technologically advanced facility is equipped to store vaccines and other pharmaceutical products at a temperature range of 2 to 8 degrees as well as the more extreme range of -80 degrees. The facility is equipped with temperature and humidity systems monitored digitally via a control dashboard.