Hellmann Healthcare Logistics transported 15 tons MRI systems from Cleveland, Ohio to Dortmund, Germany, for one of the world’s leading manufacturers. Our customer relied on Hellmann Smart Visibility to keep an eye on all parameters of the sensitive freight at all times.

The Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) systems market is valued at USD 6 billion and is expected to grow at 6.3% CAGR till 2025 (Source: Industry Research). Healthcare manufacturers who specialize in this fast-growing market understand the critical nature of the logistics services and are thus extremely selective when it comes to nominating their logistics providers. “That’s because, typically, MRI equipment is large, classified as dangerous goods, and sensitive to shock, vibration and tilt, all at the same time,” says Brad Farrell, Director of Business Development at Hellmann Worldwide Logistics based in Chicago.

Recently, our Hellmann Healthcare Logistics specialists in the US and Germany teamed up to assist one of the world’s leading MRI manufacturers to safely and securely transport one of their largest MRI systems from Cleveland, Ohio to Dortmund, Germany. Not only did this shipment weigh more than 15 tons, but it also included a large magnet filled with helium, which is, per industry standards, considered Dangerous Goods Class 2.2 (UN1963). Due to the continuous and unavoidable loss of helium during the transport journey, the team faced a strict transit time allowance before helium levels would drop below a certain point that would cause potential damage to the magnet. John Rogers, Air Network Optimization Manager for Hellmann in the US, explains, “To successfully execute this move, we needed to be mindful of the transit time constraints while also paying attention to the tilt, shock and vibration of this highly sensitive device. We could not just move such a sophisticated piece of medical technology with conventional equipment, which, by nature, has shocks and vibration. Additionally, to prepare for this special move, we needed to perform thorough route mapping with contingency planning with our core trucking and airline partners.”

“To successfully execute this move, we needed to be mindful of the transit time constraints while also paying attention to the tilt, shock and vibration of this highly sensitive device.”

On top of the carefully designed process of using special air-ride trucks at origin and destination points and the provisioning of special cranes at both the Atlanta and Frankfurt airports, our Hellmann Healthcare Logistics specialists deployed our Smart Visibility technology, which provided real-time visibility of location, tilt, shock, and vibration levels at every stage of the device’s journey. “Hellmann Smart Visibility is a platform for all modes of transportation supported by various agnostic data sources including Internet of Things capabilities”, says Henning Pottharst, Product Manager, Smart Visibility at Hellmann. This state-of-the-art visibility solution combines geofencing with shock and vibration information, allowing our operations team to remain proactive and, in this case, providing timely communication to prepare the field engineers in charge of the installation of the device at its final destination, which consequently provided a substantial cost-saving for our client.

“Hellmann Smart Visibility is a platform for all modes of transportation supported by various agnostic data sources including Internet of Things capabilities.”

“This might have been another normal day of Hellmann Healthcare Logistics doing what we were supposed to do. However, for the customer, it meant meeting its critical market demand for industry-leading MRI units across European hospitals”, says Christopher Schwarz, Director of Healthcare Solutions for Hellmann’s Asia-Pacific region. Hellmann Smart Visibility played a significant role in supporting a flawless execution of this transportation process, and ultimately peace of mind for our customer.

If you are interested in learning more about our Hellmann Healthcare Logistics solutions, please contact Olga Blaut at Olga.Blaut@hellmann.com or Chris DiBernardi at Chris.DiBernardi@hellmann.com

Interested in our Hellmann Smart Visibility solution? Reach out to Henning Pottharst at Henning.Pottharst@hellmann.com