
Published 2024-02-09
Mission: ensuring the correct temperature of medicines during transport
Djurfarmacia in Trollhättan delivers large quantities of medicines to private individuals, animal breeders, veterinarians and animal hospitals around the country. To ensure that the cold chain is maintained throughout and the right temperature vaccines and medicines reach their recipients, extensive validation of the climates of different transport boxes is carried out.
Djurfarmacia operates a pharmacy, a veterinary clinic, wholesale trade with pharmacies and distribution to a variety of target groups: private individuals, animal owners, animal breeders, food producers and animal health care providers.
The company started in 2007 and has had an impressive growth journey. The current turnover is 420 million and the business employs 46 people. Virtually the entire workforce is involved in the extensive distance selling of no less than 17,000 items in the Trollhättan warehouse.
– We account for a very large share of deliveries to, among others, pig producers in Sweden. We also carry a significant amount of medicine for sheep and cattle across the country. Vaccination is known to reduce the use of antibiotics. Prevention rather than treatment, which we are good at in Sweden. “Our deliveries of vaccines in particular make us a significant player in food supply,” says Christina Molin, CEO of Djurfarmacia.
Temperature logs and calibration
Djurfarmacia has been working with Nordtec for several years. Nordtec has installed around 20 data loggers from Testo for temperature monitoring in various spaces and performs calibration of all measuring equipment on site at the animal pharmacy once a year. In order to meet the increasingly stringent requirements of the Swedish Medical Products Agency and to be able to guarantee the delivery of reliable medicines, Nordtec has recently been hired for an extensive validation assignment.
– We do this to demonstrate that we know how to pack to maintain the right temperatures. Our distance selling license from the Swedish Medical Products Agency requires that all medicines are at the right temperature from us until they are handed over to customers. That’s why we do this kind of survey from time to time,” says Christina Molin.

Mapping of 36 transport boxes
The validation involves Nordtec’s delegates, calibration manager Maria Almestål and calibration engineer Linda Wiman, together with Linda Henriksson and Rickard Fredriksson at Djurfarmacia, packing no less than 36 transport boxes of different sizes. The drawers are filled with a variety of products and freezer bulbs. A sensor connected to a data logger is placed in a pharmaceutical package in each box, which is then placed at normal room temperature, or in a hot or cold room to simulate transportation with different ambient conditions. After 48 hours, the logs should be read to see if the temperatures in the transport boxes are still within the prescribed ranges of either +2 to +8 °C or -20 to -30 °C (depending on the medicine). This is the most comprehensive validation that Djurfarmacia has done so far.

– 12-18 pallet cages loaded with pharmaceutical packages leave our loading dock daily. The purpose of this validation is simply to ensure uninterrupted cold chains – even after longer transports of up to three days,” says Christina Molin, adding:
– We want to ensure that the medicines are transported in the right conditions to our end customers, regardless of the season and the ambient temperature.
What is your biggest challenge ahead?
– To continue to offer efficient and secure deliveries to our customers. Our goal is not to grow but to keep our customers by offering them a high level of service and safe transportation.
– We moved two years ago and doubled our space, but we already need more space and are planning an extension in a few years. Our wholesale business, as well as our other activities, is growing steadily. We have increased by 10-15% every year, although, as I said, this is not our target. This is clear evidence that our knowledge and service is appreciated and important.

Animal pharmacy
Activities: Operates Apotek Trollet, veterinary clinic, wholesale trade with pharmacies (which means that they manage the pharmacies’ inventory) and distance trade with private individuals, animal owners, animal breeders, milk and meat producers, veterinarians and animal hospitals. All operations – shop, warehouse and distribution – are located in premises in central Trollhättan. The company has received several awards over the years. CEO Christina Molin was named Entrepreneur of the Year 2023 in Trollhättan.
Measurement solution: The advanced measurement system testo Saveris 1 which offers extra high measurement data security. The solution consists of a base station and some 20 testo 150 T1 data loggers that monitor the temperatures in the pharmacy and several cold stores where medicines are stored. Nordtec carries out regular calibrations of all measuring equipment on site at Djurfarmacia and has also made several temperature mappings around the premises. The latest mission involves the validation of temperatures during transportation (see article).
Related customer stories
Mapping and calibration
Mapping ensures the right temperatures in the pet pharmacy
Contact persons

CALIBRATION
Maria Almestål
Responsibilities: Lab Manager Calibration
maria.almestal@nordtec.se
031-704 10 82