Vaccine supply chains built in a desperate rush early in the COVID-19 pandemic may provide a model for pharmaceutical distribution for years to come. Jim Cafone, a senior vice president of supply chain at Pfizer, says the rapid and successful rollout of the doses shows companies now will “need to really rethink how you configure your supply chain.”

The Wall Street Journal reports that Cafone’s remarks at the annual Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals meeting suggest a more aggressive approach to production and distribution of life-saving drugs may be embedded in the pharmaceutical sector.

Cafone says that will include mapping out the supply chain while drugs are being developed, including “how you plan it, how you procure, how you manufacture,” even as the logistics components are put in place. 

The wave of COVID-19 variants suggest flexibility will remain a critical discipline.