Godrej Appliances Protects India’s Health - Partners Government’s Universal Immunization Programme

 * Augments the health care cold chain for government’s immunization programme with more than 11000 units of vaccine refrigerators and deep freezers to be deployed pan India.

* Wins prestigious tender under the pan India programme by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Godrej Appliances, leading Indian appliances manufacturer, is all set to commission 11,856 units of state of art vaccine refrigerators and deep freezers under the Universal Immunization Programme by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare in states across India over the next 6 months. These advanced medical equipments will be delivered at various state depots across the nation in 22 locations and will be commissioned at numerous government hospitals, district hospitals and health centers strengthening the cold chain for the massive immunization programme run by the Indian Government. The brand has recently won the tender worth Rs. 95 Cr for 8767 units of ice-lined medical refrigerators and 3089 units of horizontal deep freezers through the bidding process.

Powered by Sure Chill Technology, Godrej medical refrigerators help maintain the optimum temperature range of 2 to 8 °C - a necessity for vaccine preservation and blood storage. This refrigerator maintains its temperature even in case of power outages for as long as 8-12 days in ambient temperatures of 43˚C. In regions without electric supply, the equipment can be teamed with solar power to deliver the same results. This also includes the Lite Series apt for peri-urban and urban areas wherein power outage is not a major issue and hence it comes with an adequate holdover of 3 days.  

On the other hand, Godrej medical freezers with D-cool Technology use D-shaped Copper Refrigerating Tube for more surface contact and large heat exchange area for delivering high refrigeration efficiency. It provides precision cooling at -20 °C. 

Speaking on the announcement, Kamal Nandi – Business Head and Executive Vice President – Godrej Appliances said, “We are proud to be a part of one of the largest immunization programs by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. Immunization has long been the most effective way to fight and eradicate diseases. Our Godrej medical refrigerators are equipped to deliver a precision cooling of 4°C at all times despite power cuts and is at par with international quality standards, with performance that outclasses most other ILRs. Like all Godrej appliances, these are eco-friendly and use 100% CFC, HFC and HCFC free R600A and world’s greenest R290 Refrigerant, helping deliver maximum energy-efficiency and ensuring that these don’t harm our environment. We are proud to partner the Indian government by strengthening the healthcare cold chain in this large-scale endeavor which protects the health of Indian citizens, safeguards our country’s current and future generations and helps build a robust nation and economy.”

Mr. Jaishankar Natarajan, Associate Vice President and Head - New Business Development, Godrej Appliances further added “Vaccines exposed to either more than 8°C or less than 2°C lose potency and this results in significant losses both in human terms – the end-user does not get proper immunization and economic –government has to discard costly vaccines at zero salvage value. A Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) report indicated a lack of adequate power supply (from extended/frequent power failures) as one of the key challenges for last-mile immunization infrastructure in India. Our range of technologically advanced medical refrigerators and freezers help maintain the ideal temperature for vaccines even at an ambient temperature of 43 °C and despite power cuts, making it a perfect companion for such vaccine outreach programs. Godrej is well placed in the medical cold chain category given its expertise in refrigeration over the years, its portfolio spanning medical refrigerators and deep freezers both and its widespread service network. Both these products are being manufactured in India. Together with the government and health workers, we are determined to provide last mile immunization, in line with the Indian government’s objective of quality healthcare to all.”

Health Facilities across several underdeveloped and developing countries are spread over large remote geographies, often inaccessible, making service delivery a challenge. The service arm of the brand, Godrej SmartCare, assumes critical importance here and is committed to 48-hour call closures in urban centers and 72 hours in rural centers. Backed by the assurance of spares availability, a wide service network with over 660 service centers, more than 4500 app-enabled Smart Buddy technicians, a 24 x 7 call center with linguistic capability of up to 14 regional languages to cater to India’s diversity and supported by the longest holdover time in the product, this translates into reassuring ‘always on’ performance and no fear of wastage when it comes to precious health care resources like vaccines.