Product protection top priority for supply chain execs

Product security has once again emerged as one of the top issues cited by senior healthcare executives in UPS' annual 'Pain in the Chain' survey.

The fifth edition of the report notes that protection of high-value, sensitive healthcare products is a major concern, with 57 per cent of those polled citing this among key supply chain issues.

Overall, product security was the third most common concern after regulatory compliance and managing supply chain costs, according to the report, which notes that 53 per cent of healthcare executives said they are planning to invest in security-specific technologies in the next five years.

Meanwhile, 27 per cent of those polled said security concerns were a barrier to global expansion, ranked third behind regulatory factors (46 per cent) and intellectual property protection issues (33 per cent).

"High value healthcare goods have increasingly become a target - particularly in the current challenging economic times - for theft and diversion," commented Scott Szwast, marketing director, healthcare, at UPS.

Many of the respondents who cited product security as their top issue said they were "most concerned about theft, because of the value of controlled pharmaceuticals or … specialised medical devices," he added.

The top two planned investments for healthcare companies globally - cited by 83 per cent of decision-makers - are tapping into new global markets and investing in new technologies, says the report.

For the first time UPS has also examined some five-year trends in its survey data, noting that product security, product spoilage and IP issues have been increasing over time.