Berlinger & Co is a Swiss company specialising in temperature monitoring solutions for the pharmaceutical cold chain. As they developed their range of Q-Tag Data Loggers they needed a manufacturing partner who could deliver precision at scale.
Berlinger & Co is a Swiss company specialising in temperature monitoring solutions for the pharmaceutical cold chain. As they developed their range of Q-Tag Data Loggers they needed a manufacturing partner who could deliver precision at scale.
Continuous monitoring of the cold-chain is essential to ensure flawless quality of medicines, vaccines, and other active ingredients. Pharma companies need to prove their products have been kept within the required temperature range to ensure their efficacy.
This is particularly important for the "last mile" at the end of the distribution network, which may be in a rural location in the tropics where it is hard to ensure that storage temperatures are maintained.
Berlinger required a manufacturing partner to help develop a durable, single-use
logger that could record and display stored data in the most user-friendly way possible.
Berlinger were looking for a partner capable of scaling from prototype to high-volume production while minimising costs and ensuring unmatched reliability.
The team at ESCATEC were needed to design and deliver:
High-volume manufacturing: A cost-effective and scalable production process.
Reliability: A solution for precise temperature control.
Discrete deployment: An ultra-thin, lightweight and durable fabrication
Berlinger approached ESCATEC with an initial prototype. ESCATEC’s R&D team in Malaysia refined the design through a Design for Manufacturing (DfM) process, optimising it for large-scale production while maintaining cost efficiency.
The design incorporated robust components and streamlined assembly techniques to reduce production complexity and enhance scalability.
“As these are one-time-use disposable devices, it is vital to keep the manufacturing costs as low as possible. But on the other hand, they must be very reliable as they must function properly. Lives depend on vaccines not being spoiled in transit.”
— Corneliu Tobescu, former Production and Innovation Manager, Berlinger.
ESCATEC implemented strict quality management throughout the production process.
Although the data loggers are not classified as medical devices, they are manufactured to ISO 13485 standards, ensuring high reliability and compliance with rigorous industry expectations.
ESCATEC is one of the few contract design and manufacturing companies certified to Class 2 and Class 3 for medical device production, making it uniquely qualified for this partnership.
To maintain cost efficiency and reliability, ESCATEC developed a strategic sourcing plan for the components used in Berlinger’s devices. By leveraging strong supplier relationships, ESCATEC minimised potential production disruptions while maintaining competitive pricing.
“We are very impressed with the way ESCATEC considered all aspects of procurement and production —from component sourcing right through to minimising assembly labour.”
— Corneliu Tobescu, former Production and Innovation Manager, Berlinge
ESCATEC’s Malaysian manufacturing facilities are designed to accommodate high-volume production with flexibility. The facility’s advanced assembly and testing processes allow for efficient production scaling, ensuring on-time and in-full delivery of Berlinger’s devices.
ESCATEC helped develop and manufacture Berlinger’s one-time-use devices. Three models in the Q-tag temperature monitor range provide real-time temperature tracking for logistics agents with different needs:
Q-tag Quad: A simple display indicates if temperatures exceeded pre-set limits.
Q-tag CLm: Records temperature changes and timestamps for better traceability.
Q-tag CLm doc: Offers USB data downloads for comprehensive analysis.
Compact, battery-powered devices (lithium coin cells with up to five years of service life) help ensure vaccine viability, food safety, and regulatory compliance in the supply chain.
Scalable production: ESCATEC manufactured nearly 300,000 temperature monitors annually for Berlinger, meeting growing market demand.
Market versatility: The monitors support medical logistics, food transport, and cold chain integrity verification.
Trusted partnership: Berlinger expanded its collaboration with ESCATEC, entrusting it with the development of new products.
Improved cost efficiency: Optimised procurement and production ensure competitive pricing without compromising reliability.
