Globally there are many discussions about viruses and vaccines and even more so in the last year with COVID-19.  Therefore, it is important to understand the steps to proper storage.  While vaccines help prevent people from getting sick, they only work if we store them in accurate temperatures.  This makes temperature monitoring within labs a critical factor.

Storage Affects Potency

Vaccines are delicate and if we expose them to too much light, cold, or heat then they can lose potency.  Once potency is lost, then the vaccine is not usable.  Thus, making storage and temperature key factors.

Vaccines must be safely stored throughout all stages, from manufacturer, distributor, to hospitals or clinics.  This chain depends on each party taking responsibility for the proper procedures, maintaining storage, and temperature monitoring equipment.

Storage Equipment Options

Within this chain of vaccines will be standard operating procedures.  They must store all vaccines in a pharmaceutical-grade refrigeration unit as it designs them to handle biological materials.  Inside the units are digital temperature sensors.

Every vaccination refrigeration unit must have a temperature monitoring device (TMD).  This instrument tracks the history of temperatures so that it makes a notation if there is a significant change in temperature.

Another option for storage is the PGC 7000 Series Reach-In Chamber, which accurately controls the temperature and humidity conditions.  Thus, keeping constant control and uniformity.  While we find this chamber in many diverse industries, pharmaceutical developments and manufacturing find it critical.

Walk-in chambers are also a storage equipment option, as it has the assurance of proper temperature and RH uniformity.  PGC Walk-in Rooms have been around since the 1970s and continue to achieve excellence in products for biological and biotechnological research.

Digital Data Loggers Role

A digital data logger is the most common type of monitoring device.  A data logger can aid with temperature collection but also note the length of time it was out of the advised ranges.  They also have alarms so that if the temperature is out of range, it can notify the key person in charge.

Data loggers are not only used inside the refrigeration unit but also in the transport units as the vaccines get shipped during the chain.

Data loggers receive calibration every two to three years.  The calibration is not only for the data but the passing of calibration testing and temperature uncertainty testing.  The temperature uncertainty must be less than negative or positive 1 degree Fahrenheit.

Need Help With Equipment or Calibration?

Storage and transportation are critical when it comes to vaccines.  Only through proper procedures, protocols, equipment, and calibration can they be used to ensure successful distribution to the masses.

If your lab has questions about temperature monitoring equipment or calibration of these instruments, SRP control systems ltd., can help. They have been serving as a resource for companies for over 40 years. Contact them today for all of your equipment and instrumentation needs.