B Medical Systems, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, and Toyota Motor Corporation introduce the world’s first WHO PQS prequalified refrigerated vehicle

Explore & learn more

B Medical Systems, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, and Toyota Motor Corporation introduce the world’s first WHO PQS prequalified refrigerated vehicle

Luxembourg March 31, 2021: B Medical Systems, a global leader in the vaccine cold chain industry, Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC), and Toyota Motor Corporation announced today the launch of their jointly developed refrigerated vaccine transport vehicle which also has Performance, Quality and Safety (PQS) prequalification from the World Health Organization (WHO). This is the first-ever refrigerated vehicle in the world to obtain a WHO PQS prequalification and can be used for reliably transporting vaccines or any other specimens in a 2-8 °C temperature range.

The successful rollout of immunization programs depends on the quality of the vaccine supply chain and the ability to provide a cold chain until the last mile. However, with several health centers located in extremely remote, rural, hostile terrains with minimal road infrastructure, delivering an end-to-end cold chain can be challenging. Toyota Tsusho Corporation and B Medical Systems joined hands and co-developed a refrigerated vehicle that can reliably transport vaccines to the last mile even in the most remote corners of the world.

The refrigerated vehicle has a B Medical Systems vaccine refrigerator with a storage capacity of 396L incorporated into a Toyota Land Cruiser 78. The vaccine refrigerator is powered via the vehicle while in motion and can also be powered by an external regular electric supply when parked. The vehicle provides almost a day’s autonomy, in the absence of any power supply. This solution also has temperature loggers that provide an overview of the storage conditions. The product brings together the legacy and expertise of Toyota Tsusho Corporation and B Medical Systems in the field of automobiles and vaccine cold chain, respectively.

“Last-mile has always been the weakest link in the vaccine cold chain. In several regions across the world, the last mile health centers are in remote areas that are difficult to access due to the terrain and infrastructure. We are extremely excited to bring such a solution to the market along with Toyota. The refrigerated vaccine vehicle can easily travel through rough terrains and narrow roads delivering vaccines even to the most remote health posts, thereby ensuring an effective last-mile vaccine cold chain delivery. The design of the solution also ensures that none of the vials are broken during the delivery process, eliminating vaccine wastage, which is otherwise common in refrigerated trucks. We are very happy that the product received the PQS prequalification. The combined solution has the power to revolutionize the way vaccines are delivered until the last mile.’’- said Mr. Luc Provost, CEO of B Medical Systems.

“Today would be a memorable day for our company and our partner B Medical Systems, announcing a new revolutionary PQS approved solution for vaccine cold chain. As a Toyota Group company, we are proud to give birth to this innovative product. Powerful Land Cruiser’s drivability and strong reliability of B Medical Systems’ refrigeration system would strengthen and provide a unique solution to the mobility and transport of vaccines until the last mile. Also, this cooperation with B Medical Systems will enable to provide together a strong after sales services to the client ensuring a sustainable and safe operation with our refrigerated vaccine transport vehicle. We hope this vehicle would help to extend the immunization services to reach the under-immunized and zero dose children and also to contribute to the Covid vaccines delivery”- said Mr. Shigeru Harada, COO for Automotive Division of Toyota Tsusho Corporation

 The WHO Performance, Quality and Safety (PQS) process prequalifies products and devices so that member states and UN purchasing agencies are assured of their suitability for use in immunization programs.  Countries across the world can now procure this solution for the reliable transportation of vaccines. Moreover, this refrigerated vehicle for vaccines can now be used under the international framework of COVAX, which seeks to distribute vaccines for COVID-19 fairly to developing countries, and its use as a means of transportation for COVID-19 vaccines is also expected. The companies have started the manufacturing of refrigerated vehicles and expect to ship the first batch in the coming weeks.

B Medical Systems has been consistently bringing to the market solutions that can solve the problems faced by healthcare professionals around the world when it comes to the storage and transport of vaccines. The company has to its credit several innovative solutions like the Health Center Kit, Remote Temperature Monitoring Devices, solar direct drive refrigerator with an autonomy of 30 days, etc.

B Medical Systems is a global leader in the vaccine cold chain and has a legacy of more than 40 years. The company manufactures medical-grade vaccine refrigerators, laboratory freezers, ultra-low freezers, and transport boxes that can store and transport any vaccine in the temperature range of -86 °C to 8 °C. B Medical Systems has been working closely with governments across the world to strengthen their national immunization programs, medical refrigeration, and blood cold chain.  More recently, B Medical Systems has been working with governments across the world for the effective and efficient rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines. Its recent projects include the COVID-19 vaccine cold chain projects in Luxembourg, France, Germany, Indonesia, USA, Mexico, etc.

 

Link to the joint press release: https://www.toyota-tsusho.com/english/press/detail/210331_004794.html

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Close Popup

We use cookies that are necessary to ensure the proper functioning and security of the website. Additional cookies are only used with your consent. Analytics cookies are used to monitor website traffic and optimize your user experience, evaluate which marketing channels are performing better and analyze aggregated data about usage of the website. Functional cookies make it possible to improve the functionality and personalization of our site. They may be activated by us or by third parties whose services are used on the pages of our website. Advertising cookies are placed by third-party companies processing your data to create audiences lists to deliver targeted ads on social media and the internet. Please see our cookie policy to learn more about how they are used on our website. Click on "Accept all", to accept the use of such cookies and go directly to the website or click on “Reject all", to reject the use of all the cookies. Please click on “More options” to change your cookie preferences. You can also change your settings at any time in our Privacy Center.

Close Popup
Privacy Settings saved!
Privacy Settings

These cookies are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website or for security reasons. These enable the main functions of the website to be used. The processing of the data collected through these cookies is based on our legitimate interest. You can always choose not to accept these cookies on your device and delete them using the configuration settings of your web browser. However, this risks your user experience being seriously degraded and some functions of the website may even no longer be accessible.

Necessary cookies
  • test_cookie
  • wordpress_gdpr_cookies_declined
  • wordpress_gdpr_allowed_services
  • wordpress_gdpr_cookies_allowed
  • woocommerce_items_in_cart
  • woocommerce_cart_hash
  • wp_woocommerce_session_
  • NID
  • CONSENT
  • _GRECAPTCHA
  • __cf_bm
  • mtm_consent_removed

Decline all
Confirm your settings
Accept all