Half of products launched globally through 2027 are expected to require cold-chain storage, up from 37% in 2013-2017, pushing commercialization planning upstream rather than leaving it as a late logistics decision.
Specialty medicines are projected to make up 70% of new launches through 2027, with biologics and cell and gene therapies demanding tighter delivery windows, ultra-low or cryogenic storage, and far less tolerance for supply-chain disruption.
Cold-chain investment is expanding beyond standard refrigeration into specialized facilities, monitoring systems and packout design; Cencora said its Europe cold-chain capacity has risen 40%, including two cryogenic tanks and 12 ultra-low freezers in the Netherlands.
Manufacturers are moving away from fragmented vendor models toward integrated partners that combine transport, storage, specialty distribution, regulatory planning and market access support to reduce handoffs and launch risk.
GlobalData's 2025 survey found executives citing shipping delays, cold storage, GMP compliance and regulatory issues as key supply-chain challenges, underscoring that logistics failures now threaten launch timing, costs and patient access.