Logistics Giants Accelerate Push into Healthcare

Large logistics companies made a decisive push into healthcare in 2025.

Industry leaders UPS, DHL, and FedEx all expanded aggressively, drawn by healthcare logistics’ growth potential, customer stickiness, and higher margins. As hospitals, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and medical device companies rethink how products move from factory to point of care, healthcare logistics has shifted from a back-end function to a strategic pillar supporting supply chain resilience, cost control, and regulatory compliance. This evolution is being driven by a convergence of structural pressures reshaping the healthcare supply chain.

The pandemic exposed the fragility of healthcare supply chains, from PPE shortages to limited visibility into inventory levels and supplier capacity. In response, healthcare organizations have prioritized redundancy, traceability, and speed. Those are capabilities that large logistics providers are uniquely positioned to deliver at scale. To meet this demand, logistics companies have invested heavily in dedicated healthcare infrastructure, including temperature-controlled facilities, specialized handling processes, and technology platforms designed to support regulated products.

Logistics giants UPS, DHL, FedEx make recent commitments

UPS has made healthcare a core strategic priority, investing heavily in cold chain infrastructure, precision delivery, and regulated logistics tailored to pharmaceuticals and biologics. In November 2025, it acquired Canada-based Andlauer Healthcare Group (AHG) for $1.6 billion to expand its temperature-controlled healthcare transportation and distribution capabilities. AHG’s specialized cold chain network is expected to reduce transit times while enhancing end-to-end visibility, global reach, and quality assurance across UPS Healthcare operations.

Kate Gutmann, EVP and president of international, healthcare, and supply chain solutions for UPS, said Andlauer shares UPS’s focus on quality, precision, and speed. Michael Andlauer, founder and CEO of AHG, now leads UPS Canada Healthcare and AHG, with a mandate to expand specialized capabilities and support the distribution of high-value, temperature-sensitive therapies.

Earlier acquisitions of German cold chain logistics firms Frigo-Trans and BPL added European warehousing and time-critical freight forwarding capabilities, expanding UPS’s end-to-end temperature-controlled services across key pharmaceutical markets.

These investments reflect broader industry dynamics. Service quality, real-time visibility, and regulatory compliance command premium pricing in healthcare logistics. Growth areas such as biologics, cell and gene therapies, specialty pharmaceuticals, and implantable devices require precise temperature control, tight delivery windows, and secure handling. Those are requirements that favor logistics providers with advanced technology, automation, and compliance expertise.

DHL has emerged as one of the most established global players in healthcare logistics, operating one of the largest dedicated networks for life sciences and healthcare products. Its offerings include GDP-compliant cold chain services, clinical trial logistics, and real-time monitoring across facilities worldwide. DHL’s global footprint and regulatory expertise have made it a preferred partner for multinational pharmaceutical and medical technology companies.

In September 2025, DHL acquired SDS Rx, a specialized provider of final-mile delivery and healthcare transportation services supporting long-term care and specialty pharmacies, radiopharmacies, and health system networks. SDS Rx operates more than 200 locations across the U.S. and specializes in same-day and expedited delivery services designed for the urgency and precision of clinical environments.

“The life sciences and healthcare sector is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 11% through 2030,” said Mark Kunar, CEO of DHL Supply Chain North America, at the time of the acquisition. “Specialty pharmacy already accounts for approximately 50% of total prescription drug spending in the U.S., and the number of patients served by specialty pharmacies grew by 12% between 2018 and 2022.”

By integrating SDS Rx into its Life Sciences & Healthcare portfolio, DHL is extending its end-to-end supply chain capabilities all the way to the point of care. The move aligns with DHL’s broader Strategy 2030 healthcare initiative and reflects growing recognition that final-mile delivery is a critical link between supply chain performance and patient outcomes.

Kunar said rising demand for specialty pharmaceutical and healthcare solutions presents significant opportunities for DHL to leverage its scale, expertise, and operational discipline.

“We are expanding our healthcare logistics capabilities, attracting a new segment of healthcare customers, and reinforcing our position as a trusted partner in building resilient and connected healthcare supply chains,” he said.

Drew Kronick, founder, CEO, and managing partner of SDS Rx, noted that demand for healthcare final-mile delivery continues to grow, and DHL’s acquisition is aimed at improving delivery precision, reliability, and speed for patients with the most urgent needs.

DHL also acquired CryoPDP in 2025, a specialty courier focused on clinical trials, biopharmaceuticals, and gene therapies. Together, these acquisitions strengthen DHL’s capabilities across critical segments of the healthcare supply chain, spanning pharmaceuticals, consumer health, animal health, and medical technology under the DHL Health Logistics umbrella.

FedEx is also expanding its healthcare footprint, with a focus on technology, compliance, and speed to support complex healthcare distribution requirements. The company has added specialized healthcare logistics services, including advanced tracking, value-added fulfillment, and cold chain solutions, while investing in dedicated life science centers designed to handle temperature-sensitive shipments such as biologics, vaccines, clinical samples, and investigational medicinal products.

FedEx operates life science centers in markets including Korea, Singapore, Japan, India, the U.S., and the Netherlands. It has also introduced healthcare-focused air cargo services, such as a direct route between Dublin, Ireland, and Indianapolis, to reduce transit times for pharmaceutical and other high-value healthcare products. These services integrate priority handling, real-time digital visibility, and intervention capabilities to maintain temperature and condition control throughout transport.

FedEx has earned IATA CEIV Pharma certification across multiple hubs and ground-handling operations, demonstrating compliance with stringent global standards for pharmaceutical logistics and providing healthcare customers with assurance around product safety and integrity.

Strategy 2030 and beyond

DHL’s “Strategy 2030 – Accelerate Sustainable Growth” outlines its long-term plan to expand its logistics footprint by focusing on high-growth sectors and embedding sustainability into its core operations. Healthcare is a central pillar of this strategy, driven by growth rates that exceed the broader economy and by logistics requirements that extend beyond traditional freight or parcel delivery.

“We are ideally positioned to seize growth opportunities in a rapidly changing world thanks to our well-balanced, diversified portfolio,” DHL Group CEO Tobias Meyer said in a statement. “We will fortify our market-leading position in global logistics with a strong focus on quality and on servicing the needs of fast-growing industry segments.”

DHL previously relied on its Strategy 2025 roadmap to navigate global disruptions, including the pandemic, supply chain volatility, and geopolitical tensions. Under Strategy 2030, the company aims to grow revenue by 50% by 2030 through divisional and group-wide growth initiatives.

Recent FedEx earnings commentary shows healthcare emerging as a priority industry contributing to B2B revenue growth, alongside automotive and aerospace. FedEx is positioning healthcare as a core vertical within its logistics portfolio, recognizing that cold chain and time-critical healthcare shipping are high-value, technically demanding, and expected to grow rapidly.

As part of this focus, FedEx appointed Nick Gennari as president of global healthcare in 2024. In November 2025, Gennari also joined the board of GXP-Storage, a life sciences company specializing in compliant, visible, and scalable material management, signaling an effort to integrate storage and logistics for full lifecycle visibility.

“The life sciences industry has long treated storage and logistics as separate functions,” said Jeff Johnson, founder and CEO of GXP-Storage. “Nick’s appointment represents our commitment to uniting these worlds. By bridging the gap between ‘at rest’ and ‘in transit,’ we’re delivering the visibility, quality, and regulatory control our clients need across the full material lifecycle.”

UPS’s healthcare strategy similarly combines infrastructure expansion, targeted acquisitions, and technology investment. UPS Healthcare is rapidly scaling its global network, expanding its geographic footprint, enhancing cold chain and specialty capabilities, and embedding itself more deeply into life sciences and healthcare supply chains, positioning healthcare as a long-term growth engine beyond traditional parcel delivery.

Specialized 3PL and regional providers 

While global integrators dominate large-scale healthcare distribution, a growing share of innovation and capacity expansion is coming from specialized and regional third-party logistics providers. These companies are targeting specific gaps in the healthcare supply chain, particularly where precision, customization, and regulatory expertise outweigh sheer network size.

Mid-tier 3PLs are differentiating by building deep capabilities in narrowly defined healthcare segments rather than broad, multi-industry networks. GXO Logistics’ acquisition of ColdChain Solutions, for example, strengthened its ability to support pharmaceutical manufacturers with temperature-controlled storage and handling across critical ranges.

Similarly, EVERSANA has expanded distribution infrastructure designed specifically for life sciences customers, integrating automation, robotics, and AI-driven fulfillment to support high-touch pharma commercialization models. Its focus extends beyond warehousing to services such as product launch support, specialty distribution, and patient-centric fulfillment.

Regional providers such as Noatum Logistics are emphasizing digital platforms and compliance-ready processes to manage the complexity of life sciences shipments, particularly in international and clinical trial environments. Capabilities such as real-time temperature monitoring, serialization, chain-of-custody documentation, and audit readiness are increasingly table stakes for healthcare customers, and areas where specialized 3PLs can move faster than larger organizations.

These providers are also more willing to tailor systems and workflows to individual customer requirements, an approach that resonates with biotech firms and emerging pharma companies operating smaller but highly regulated supply chains.

Supporting clinical and specialty supply chains 

Many specialized 3PLs are positioning themselves around high-growth segments that require bespoke logistics models like:

• Clinical trial logistics and investigational product distribution.
• Cell and gene therapy supply chains with ultra-low temperature requirements.
• Specialty pharmacy and direct-to-patient delivery.
• High-value medical devices and implantable products.

In these areas, execution risk is high and tolerance for error is low, favoring providers with focused expertise and dedicated healthcare operations.

The expansion of specialized and regional 3PLs signals a shift toward a more segmented healthcare logistics market. Rather than relying solely on large, integrated carriers, healthcare manufacturers and providers are increasingly assembling hybrid networks, pairing global reach with niche partners that offer precision, flexibility, and deep regulatory knowledge.

For healthcare supply chains facing growing product complexity and cost pressure, these providers offer an alternative model: smaller scale, but purpose-built for the demands of modern healthcare logistics.