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PTC Logistics completed a cold-chain vaccine delivery pilot with the Department of Health, reporting zero rejected shipments in efforts to reach geographically isolated communities
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PTC Logistics head of business development, marketing and innovation Andres Borromeo, detailed the pilot run at the Supply Chain Conference 2026, organized by the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines
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PTC Logistics partnered with University Research Company, a US health consulting firm, to promote its freon-free, active-cooling transport using heat pumps instead of ice or refrigerants to the DOH
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All vaccines and diluents were accepted with steady temperature readings of 4.1-4.7°C within the cold-chain range
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PTC Logistics says it is currently supporting a measles-rubella vaccine campaign in remote areas as part of continued DOH collaboration
PTC Logistics has completed a cold-chain vaccine delivery pilot with the Department of Health (DOH), reporting zero rejected shipments in efforts to reach geographically isolated communities, its executive said at the Supply Chain Conference 2026 organized by the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines (SCMAP).
Andres Borromeo, head of business development, marketing and innovation for PTC Logistics, said the company partnered with University Research Co., a US-based global health consulting firm, to bring its temperature-controlled transport solution to the DOH’s attention amid an ongoing national vaccination campaign.
The company’s cold-chain units use no freon, ice packs or ice jets, relying instead on active cooling powered by heat pumps. Borromeo said the modular, lightweight system can be scaled depending on delivery volume.
The pilot focused on Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas, or GIDA, a term coined by the DOH in the early 2000s to identify communities lacking adequate healthcare infrastructure and access.
“GIDA, that’s a mindset. I always challenge my team, GIDA is a mindset. It’s how you explain the likes of Coca-Cola — you travel to these far-flung areas, and yet you can see Coca-Cola being sold in those stores,” former health secretary Teodoro Herbosa shared in a meeting, according to Borromeo.
After signing a memorandum of agreement with the DOH, Boromeo said PTC Logistics was asked to stress-test its solution by delivering to some of the country’s most difficult-to-reach sites, including areas in Region 2 and Mountain Province, as well as a separate delivery route from Batangas to the island of Mindoro.
READ: DOH, URC, PTC Logistics sign partnership for vaccine distribution
Borromeo said the DOH placed its own data logger inside PTC’s temperature-controlled units during testing for side-by-side comparison.
He said readings from both matched closely, with temperatures holding at roughly 4.1°C to 4.7°C even at the hottest point of the day, within the required cold-chain range for vaccine storage.
“All the vaccines and diluents that we delivered to the sites were all accepted… So no loss,” Borromeo said.
Rural health unit staff at the delivery sites reacted with disbelief, Borromeo said, noting they had previously relied on passive cooling methods, ice packs, and styrofoam containers, and had to travel to regional hubs themselves to retrieve vaccine shipments, a process complicated by limited transport access and long travel times.
READ: DOH proposes supply chain bureau to improve healthcare delivery
Borromeo said the company is currently supporting the DOH’s ongoing measles-rubella vaccination campaign in remote areas, describing the effort as part of a broader push toward “bridging the gap through collaboration” between the private sector, government and global health partners.—Michael Barcas
