Kales Airline Services to be first CEIV Pharma certified GSSA by Sept

The General Sales and Service Agent (GSSA) Kales Airline Services has embarked on the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Center of Excellence for Independent Validators in Pharmaceutical Logistics (CEIV Pharma) certification process.

Once certified, Kales Airline Services will be the first GSSA to achieve this certification. 

Sebastiaan Scholte, CEO, Kales Airline Services, informed The STAT Trade Times that the company is planning to complete the certification by September 2024.

“GSSA’s play a very crucial role in the air cargo supply chain. We take the bookings, we do the sales, we talk to the customers. So it's very important for GSSAs to be also aware of needs for pharmaceutical shipments,” he said.

Scholte also informed that they will start certifying their Brussels, Zurich and Milan stations first with at least two people from each station joining the training which is part of the CEIV certification.

“To ensure a seamless pharmaceutical air cargo supply chain, it’s crucial to have the certification in these stations where we represent airlines who are already CEIV Pharma certified in the stations or cities or countries,” he said.

Talking about the rigorous validation processes involved, Scholte noted that it boils down to the attitude of resources. “It’s about the willingness and eagerness of our people to go through the trainings and validations,” he added.

Speaking about his conversation with customers and airlines, he noted that airlines are enthusiastic about this initiative. “We are very pleased to have started this important certification process for pharmaceutical shipments to even better serve our airline, forwarding and shipper’s customers.”

“Let's be honest,” he added, “this is not only going to help the existing business, but it will also help us attract more pharma business, which is why I support them. We chose these countries, especially, Switzerland, Belgium and Italy, because a lot of pharmaceutical shipments originate from there.”

Meanwhile, IATA wrote in a Linkedin post announcing the development, “GSSA play an important role in representing airlines mainly in terms of commercialising airfreight capacity, to supervise complex local operations and administration services. Kales' commitment to improving quality and services across its operations through CEIV Pharma sets a positive example for the industry and demonstrates their strong commitment to excellence.”

IATA created the CEIV Pharma to help organisations and the entire air cargo supply chain to address the industry's need for more safety, security, compliance and efficiency, through a globally consistent and recognised pharmaceutical-product handling certification.