Hospital closures and shifting care settings are changing where medications and medical equipment are needed. Strategically located, compliant distribution centers help life sciences manufacturers position inventory closer to providers and patients. Multi-client warehousing makes regional expansion practical without building dedicated facilities, and Kenco is expanding a nationwide network to support it.
More than 100 rural hospitals closed between 2013 and 2020, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Afterward, residents traveled about 20 miles farther for common inpatient services and 40 miles farther for some specialized services.
Care is also shifting in other ways. Some markets are consolidating into large health systems, while others are spreading care across smaller hospitals, outpatient facilities, pharmacies, clinics and patients’ homes.
A distribution network built around yesterday’s healthcare map may leave inventory too far from the point of care. A product that’s in stock but several states away isn’t truly available when a provider needs it tomorrow.
Putting inventory closer to the points of care
Strategically located distribution centers can put medications and medical equipment closer to the providers and patients who need them. The right regional node can shorten transit times, expand the number of destinations within one- or two-day ground service, and reduce dependence on expedited transportation. It can also give manufacturers more options when weather, carrier capacity, or another disruption affects part of the network.
But proximity alone isn’t the only factor. Manufacturers also need to understand where demand is coming from, which products require the fastest response, and how reliably carriers can serve each region.
Network analysis brings those variables together. It helps manufacturers evaluate where another distribution point could improve coverage, how inventory should be positioned across the network, and how warehousing and transportation decisions affect one another.
Extending compliance across the network
In life sciences, opening another distribution point isn’t just an operational and financial decision. It’s also a quality and regulatory one.
Each location must have the right controls to protect product integrity and traceability. Depending on the products it handles, that may include state distribution licenses, DSCSA compliance, serialization and lot tracking, temperature monitoring, quarantine procedures, secure storage, and trained employees working from documented processes.
Those requirements extend beyond the warehouse and into transportation. Manufacturers also need visibility into product conditions, location, and chain of custody while shipments are in transit.
Expanding access only works if products can move closer to patients without weakening compliance along the way.
Making regional access practical with multi-client distribution
For many manufacturers, building dedicated life sciences operations in several regions is difficult to justify.
A dedicated facility requires sufficient volume to support the building, labor, technology, quality program, transportation network, and other fixed costs. That business case can be especially challenging for mid-sized manufacturers, companies launching new products, or businesses with demand spread unevenly across the country.
Fortunately, multi-client warehousing operations offer a practical alternative.
By sharing infrastructure across multiple customers, manufacturers can gain access to specialized facilities, trained employees, and warehouse technology and automation without building every capability themselves.
That shared model can make it more practical to position products in another part of the country. It can also give manufacturers room to test a new market, integrate an acquisition, support a product launch, or respond to changing demand without committing to a dedicated building before the volume is there.
Building a nationwide life sciences network at Kenco
Kenco has supported pharmaceutical, medical device, eyecare, and other healthcare companies for more than two decades. In 2022, the company formalized that commitment by launching a dedicated Life Sciences Division.
Since then, Kenco has continued to invest in the people, systems, partnerships, and facilities required to serve the sector. Its current life sciences logistics capabilities include FDA-compliant warehousing, temperature-controlled distribution, pharmaceutical fulfillment, white-glove delivery, and end-to-end supply chain visibility.
Kenco also operates in active compliance with the Drug Supply Chain Security Act and is licensed to distribute pharmaceuticals in all 50 states. Its certifications include ISO 13485 and recognition by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy as a Verified-Accredited Wholesale Distributor.
Just as important, Kenco is investing in the people behind these operations. Its internal Life Science Certification program keeps employees current on regulations and industry practices through continuing education and annual recertification.
Kenco’s Jeffersonville, Indiana, campus shows how this expertise can come together with strategically located, multi-client infrastructure. The centrally located campus offers a building dedicated to supporting Life Sciences companies, offering deep expertise, room to scale, and gives customers shared access to labor, technology, and advanced automation.
Kenco plans to build on this model as it expands its nationwide network of life sciences-compliant facilities. The goal is to give manufacturers more options for positioning critical products closer to providers and patients—without requiring them to build every regional capability themselves.
Design the network around where care is going
The healthcare map will continue to change, and life sciences distribution networks need to change with it.
That doesn’t mean manufacturers need inventory everywhere. It means identifying where another distribution point can materially improve access, then supporting that location with the right transportation, technology, people, and compliance controls.
A strategically placed, certified network can help critical products travel fewer miles, arrive more reliably, and reach a wider range of care settings so distance doesn’t become another barrier between patients and the care they need.
Ultimately, flawless logistics execution improves the patient experience and supports greater independence. A patient managing diabetes who knows their medication will arrive between 3 and 5 p.m. can plan around it and go about a normal day. Logistics can’t cure a disease, but it can help patients live more independently.
Frequently asked questions
How does distribution center location affect patient access?
Strategically located distribution centers put medications and medical equipment closer to the providers and patients who need them. The right regional node can shorten transit times, expand the number of destinations within one- or two-day ground service, and reduce dependence on expedited transportation.
What compliance requirements apply to a new life sciences distribution point?
Depending on the products handled, each location may need state distribution licenses, DSCSA compliance, serialization and lot tracking, temperature monitoring, quarantine procedures, secure storage, and trained employees working from documented processes. Manufacturers also need visibility into product conditions, location, and chain of custody while shipments are in transit.
What is multi-client warehousing in life sciences?
Multi-client warehousing shares specialized facilities, trained employees, and warehouse technology and automation across multiple customers. It lets manufacturers position products in new regions, test a market, or support a product launch without committing to a dedicated building before the volume is there.
What life sciences logistics capabilities does Kenco offer?
Kenco provides FDA-compliant warehousing, temperature-controlled distribution, pharmaceutical fulfillment, white-glove delivery, and end-to-end supply chain visibility. It is licensed to distribute pharmaceuticals in all 50 states, holds ISO 13485 certification, and is recognized by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy as a Verified-Accredited Wholesale Distributor.