More than 16,600 kilometers. This is the distance that separates Brazil from China, the main producer of the most coveted materials since the beginning of the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus. The race for masks, gloves, facial shields and aprons is another symbol of the reality experienced by the world since the beginning of this year.

Since the announcement of the construction of the Hospital Center for the Covid-19 Pandemic, by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), Fiotec has been on the market to guarantee the necessary equipment and supplies not only for the hospital, but for several other Foundation initiatives in fighting the disease. The dimensions reached by the pandemic and the obstacles imposed on the circulation of goods led Fiotec to an unprecedented step in its importing processes. For the first time, the institution carried out so-called charter operations, when an entire aircraft is chartered to transport high-volume cargo.

The first shipments of this kind arrived in Brazil between late May and early June, bringing more than three million products, from Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to pharmaceutical materials. Elisângela Bevitori, who is responsible for Fiotec's International Purchasing team, explains that the option for chartering was motivated by the volume of imports and the scarcity of flights from China. “Normally, in our processes, we pay for space on aircraft to bring the purchased materials, but in view of the volume of these shipments, we concluded that chartering an entire plane would be more efficient and less costly. Besides, very few airlines are flying from China to Brazil. The few existing flights make many stops, so the loads would take up to 10 days to arrive.”

In the import process that is normally carried out, airport and airline services are contracted, including dispatchers for loading and unloading cargo. In charter operations, on the other hand, the buyer of the goods is fully responsible. “It is truly a war operation, because we need to match all the stages for the aircraft to take off properly loaded. When we choose chartering, the airport offers us a specific time frame, between four and five hours, for the plane to land and all material to be loaded. Handling the goods at the airport, transporting the cargo there, everything needs to be synchronized”, details Elisângela.

To assist them throughout this procedure, Fiotec selected DMS Logistics among four other freight agents that have already worked in partnership with the institution, based on the quotation presented for the performance of the services. The company is responsible for the so-called door-to-door process, taking the goods from their origin to their final destination, where they will be effectively used.