TraceLink Inc., the world’s largest integrated digital supply network, providing real-time information sharing for better patient outcomes, today announced it has surpassed 2.3 billion serial numbers commissioned worldwide, with over 1 billion serial numbers commissioned by customers in Q1 alone, a 325 percent increase over the prior quarter.
TraceLink’s network digitally connects the end-to-end pharmaceutical supply chain, helping companies comply with global regulatory requirements aimed at eliminating counterfeit medicines. These regulations require that pharmaceutical manufacturers commission, or assign, a unique serial number to each saleable unit of drug product before release or shipment so that it can be tracked throughout the supply chain to ensure patient safety and security. The increase in serial numbers commissioned on the TraceLink network is fueled by the recent enforcement of the U.S. Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) and EU Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD) serialization requirements.
“The sheer velocity of serial numbers actively flowing through the TraceLink network is a testament to the extraordinary achievement of our customers and partners in meeting DSCSA and FMD deadlines, an industry-wide undertaking that took enormous collaboration,” said Shabbir Dahod, president and CEO, TraceLink. “In the four years leading up to these deadlines, our network commissioned just over 1 billion serial numbers, and the fact that TraceLink surpassed this number in Q1 alone demonstrates the scalability and value of our network as we continuously work toward maximizing the efficacy, quality, safety, security and availability of life sciences product that improve human life.”
Enforcement deadlines have also resulted in the increase of contract manufacturing organization (CMO) connections on the TraceLink network, which now total more than 4,600 active connections, and has saved the industry over $4.26 billion by eliminating costly point-to-point connections while enabling the industry to meet compliance deadlines.