Drug counterfeiting and diversion is a growing threat that has become industrialized on a global scale, endangering patient safety and undermining economies and brands. It can often be fatal. Statistics show that “One million patients die annually from toxic, counterfeit pharmaceuticals.”[1]
The rising incidence of counterfeit medicines ($200B globally) has resulted in legislation being rolled-out worldwide to secure global supply chains. End-to-end product serialization, authentication, and traceability – from point of manufacture to point of dispensation – is now essential to:
- Ensure compliance
- Control quality
- Stop revenue loss
- Keep people safe
Achieving this level of brand protection is daunting. Previously, there was no real deterrence. Now, more of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies are partnering with Systech – the serialization pioneer – to secure their global distribution channels.
Systech uniquely combines powerful machine vision with flexible cloud-based solutions into one comprehensive platform – the Systech end-to-end supply chain solution set – to provide complete item transfer visibility at all strategic points along the supply chain.
Protecting products and patients starts with serialization.
Serialization is mandated in most of the world as governments move to protect their consumers from diverted, counterfeited, and adulterated drugs. Complying with these regulations is complex.
Systech is meeting this challenge with UniSeries®, a cost-effective, equipment agnostic, and comprehensive serialization solution that’s configurable – not customized – to meet a wide range of needs. Its patented software offers drug manufacturers the ability to adapt to stringent legislative guidelines without extensive rework and revalidation.
UniSeries offers flexible, full stack (L1-L4) capabilities that can be rapidly deployed on any packaging line, site or enterprise in any region to meet serialization and track-and-trace regulatory compliance, e.g. the Drug Supply Chain Security Act in the U.S. and the Falsified Medicine Directive in the EU.
Deploying foolproof product authentication.
Moving beyond serialization, Systech offers a simple brand-protection solution that works with standard UPC bar codes on existing drug packaging. With UniSecure®, there is no need to add special inks, holograms, or any other common authentication techniques.
While there may be millions of the exact same barcode out there, UniSecure’s patented technology is able to leverage micro-variances in printing to derive a unique digital signature, or e-Fingerprint®, for each and every package.
This methodology and delivery of an e-Fingerprint that connects each physical item to its specific digital identifier is bank-safe secure, and cannot be reverse engineered or duplicated in any manner. Brands now have the benefit of non-additive, covert product security. And using a mobile app, users can quickly confirm that medicines are authentic, check tracking details, and exchange information with trade partners at any time and at any point across the supply chain.
Simplifying traceability and compliance.
Patient safety is priority one for pharmaceutical companies worldwide, and a big part of their protection strategy is the ability of brands to verify the integrity of their medicines as they move from point to point.
Systech delivers a comprehensive, one-vendor solution for seamless and secure data exchange, providing complete item transfer visibility across the global supply chain.
With UniTrace®, every unit of your product can be located as it moves from the factory to the patient. Brands are able to connect their ecosystem of manufacturers, CMOs, repackagers, 3PLs, and trade partners with dynamic data exchange capabilities, powerful rework tools, and secure regulatory compliance reporting.
Connecting the physical to the digital for blockchain-enabled security.
Blockchain – the engine for cryptocurrency like Bitcoin – provides a digital ledger that can manage and record the state, ownership, transfer, location, time stamping and other associated item and movement details. This enables the pharmaceutical supply chain to have every event and transaction securely logged and managed for an item. Connecting the digital to the physical.
With its encryption, immutability, trust, and peer-to-peer visibility, blockchain represents a potentially game-changing paradigm for creating and managing digital identity. Combining bulletproof digital identity with authenticated physical product identity makes the use of blockchain an essential resource for brands to help protect patients, products, and revenue.
Closing the physical world-to-digital world loop is a critical issue when evaluating blockchain for supply chain applications. Systech has taken a leadership role by working to combine its trusted e-Fingerprinting technology with blockchain-enabled technology to create an innovative solution in the fight for supply chain safety and authenticity.
Systech is the global technology leader in supply chain security and product authentication. For more than 30 years, we have put technology on the line. Systech pioneered pharmaceutical serialization as well as innovations in line vision and inspection, overall packaging line management and track and trace. Today, Systech is revolutionizing brand protection. Our software solutions ensure products are authentic, safe and connected—from manufacturing to the consumer’s hands.
[1] Behner, Peter, Hecht, Dr. Marie-Lyn, Wahl, Dr. Fabian, Fighting Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals: New Defenses for an Underestimated – and Growing – Menace, PwC, June 29, 2017.