Partnership in sustainability and safety

QRS Healthcare is supplier of -and specialist in- medical instruments, equipment and consumables for healthcare professionals. For distribution to customers in the Benelux area QRS has partnered up with Vos Logistics. As a frontrunner in sustainability, Vos Logistics operates a fine-meshed and efficient distribution network for medical supplies in the Benelux.

• QRS Healthcare, a specialist in medical instruments and part of the Asker Group, has chosen Vos Logistics as its partner for Benelux distribution.
• Vos Logistics operates a healthcare platform with a fine-meshed distribution network and carries out daily rides to all hospitals, clinics and nursing homes in the Benelux area.
• Both partners focus on safety and sustainability; Vos Logistics is electrifying city distribution, consolidating shipments and refueling with HVO (renewable diesel).
• QRS equips the entire fleet of Vos Logistics Benelux Distribution with First15 lifesaving kits, with which Drivers can help victims of incidents until the ambulance arrives.

QRS Healthcare is located in Eindhoven. Since 2019 the company is part of the Asker Healthcare Group, a platform for over 45 leading companies in the field of medical products and medical equipment for the healthcare sector in Europe. Asker is headquartered in Sweden.

Scale

QRS holds a prominent position in the Dutch and Belgian markets. The company supplies a wide range of medical instruments from a large number of manufacturers to hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, ambulance services and governments. In a market that is increasingly characterized by scarcity in availability and knowledge, QRS makes good use of the scale of the international organization it is part of to optimally serve its customers.

EcoVadis Platinum

In a similar manner, the Asker Group is using its scale to make its activities and the related supply chain more sustainable. Late 2023, Asker and its subsidiaries received the EcoVadis Platinum certificate for its efforts in the field of ESG (environment, social, governance). Next to running sustainable processes, Asker companies are developing more sustainable products. One example is the development of a more sustainable, accelerator-free research glove with significantly reduced carbon emissions in the production phase. Given the high rate of consumption of research gloves in healthcare, every improvement makes a big impact right away.

Consolidated transport

QRS has its own BREEAM-certified warehouse in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. It is outsourcing transport and distribution, because maintaining a fine-meshed network requires sufficient volumes. Every day, Vos Logistics has a fleet of 450 vehicles on the roads throughout the Benelux, delivering consolidated shipments from different customers. Vos Logistics employees deliver goods to the location where they are needed, whether that is at the loading platform of the storage facility or a specific department, floor or other destination on the premises. And because the driver is picking up shipments destined for Vos Logistics’ hubs along the way, the amount of ‘empty kilometres’ is reduced to a minimum. This efficiency is attained through the strong network that Vos Logistics operates.

Electrified city distribution

Vos Logistics is a frontrunner in sustainability. Since 2010, sustainability is a core value of the company. It shows in the steps they are taking in this field. In an increasing number of cities, Vos Logistics delivers using electrically powered trucks. Part of the electricity needed for charging those comes from solar panels on the roofs of the BREEAM-certified warehouses operated by the company, and from trailers equipped with solar panels. Moreover, in collaboration with customers, Vos Logistics is increasing its use of HVO, a biofuel that reduces net carbon emissions per kilometre by up to 89%.

First15 Life Saving Kit

Being a pioneer in sustainable transport and sporting extensive expertise in fine-meshed distribution of medical supplies, Vos Logistics is the right partner for QRS. In September 2023, the partnership launched. Like every good partnership, it goes both ways. QRS holds exclusive distribution rights for products of First15. One of those products is the Life Saving Kit, comprising all essential items needed for delivering first aid until professional medical aid arrives. The first 15 minutes after an incident are crucial for the chance of survival and prevention of long-term consequences – hence the name First15. The kit is built up around a tourniquet, an instrument for stopping arterial bleeding. A unique feature is that this tourniquet can be used by laypeople.

Saving lives

Under the partnership, each vehicle operated by Vos Logistics Benelux Distribution is equipped with the First15 Life Saving Kit, allowing Drivers to provide first aid when they come across an accident. As Vos Logistics has several hundred Drivers on the road each day, chances are that there will be regular opportunities in which a Driver can step in to save a life. Apart from supplying the First15-kits and providing the necessary training, QRS will also take care of the emergency aid supplies at all Vos Logistics facilities: first aid kits, AEDs, eye washing equipment and so on. Through their Safe & Sure package QRS keeps these supplies up to date, taking safety to an even higher level.

Safe and Sustainable

Dennis Broeksteeg, Business Unit Manager Benelux Distribution at Vos Logistics: “Thanks to the Power of our Shared Network we can offer excellent service levels to QRS Healthcare. We are proud of that. But at least equally important is the click between our companies: we share ambition and believe in the power of collaboration. That shows in our shared focus on sustainability, but also in our drive to improve road safety. Thanks to QRS, we take yet another step in this field, far beyond what is usual in our sector. We are both committed to get results quickly, so we go for it.”

Ambitious

Alex van der Putten, Managing Director at QRS Healthcare: “We have knowledge of medical products and we are good in sourcing and stocking them. Transport, however, is a profession in its own right. If you want to do that well, you are going to need volume. Vos Logistics is able to run a fine-meshed distribution network with daily deliveries to all healthcare facilities throughout the Benelux area. On top of that, they are just as ambitious as we are when it comes to sustainability. And, as it should be in a true partnership, we are helping each other. By equipping all vehicles of Vos Logistics Benelux Distribution with First15 Life Saving Kits and by training all Drivers, we will jointly make a big contribution to road safety. I am looking forward to a long-lasting and fertile collaboration.”

Would you like to know how Vos Logistics can support your business through the Power of our Shared Network? Get in touch with Rianne Schouten.