Arizona wholesaler goes with IBS and rfXcel for ERP, track-and-trace capability

The passage of the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA) last November is a signal event in pharmaceutical distribution: now, the first steps toward tracking drug shipments throughout supply chains, nationally, are a matter of law. One of the first new implementations since DQSA was passed has been announced by International Business Systems (IBS; Solna, Sweden; US HQ in Folsom, CA) for a regional wholesaler, LLC Wholesale Supply (Tempe, AZ), which calls itself a full-service distributor and wholesaler of branded and generic pharmaceuticals, med-surg and durable medical equipment.

IBS is installing its Enterprise system, part of the Business Suite 2014 which it characterizes as a mid-market enterprise resource-planning platform. A version of Enterprise is tailored to the specific needs of pharma manufacturers and distributors, coming pre-built with capabilities for handling rebates, controlled substances (the DEA-approved Controlled Substances Ordering System, or CSOS), distributor-license validation and others common to pharma distribution. It also manages drug NDC numbers, an element of DQSA compliance. The Enterprise product is managed as a cloud-based system, operating from an IBS data center. Michael O’Brian, VP Americas for the firm, says that the implementations should be complete by June 1.

Another part of the implementation will be the integration of the cloud-based ePedigree Management solution from rfXcel (San Ramon, CA), a longtime player in the serialization/track-and-trace space that is partnering with IBS. As Glenn Abood, CEO of the firm, explains, although California’s e-Pedigree rules are a thing of the past, clients like LLC Wholesale can take advantage of the ePedigree Management systems capability to receive, store, update and report out transaction events during supply chain activity (such as order processing, shipment notifications and the like)—all the things that will eventually be part of compliance with DQSA. Abood says that his company has kept close track of, and participates in, the standards-setting in traceability going on at the GS1 organization. “Some of our clients are already seeing the benefits of better supply chain visibility in handling recalls, for example; many of the things that were promised all along in the serialization debates.”