UPS and Trackonomy Discuss Historic Distribution Efforts for Millions of COVID-19 Vaccines

When scientists developed COVID-19 vaccines and they were ready to be distributed, never before had there been such an urgent need to use the existing supply chain for something so sensitive, so delicate, and so important.

Here at Trackonomy, and in partnership with UPS, we knew we could play an important role by creating the best vaccine distribution operating system the world has ever seen. This is the story of how Trackonomy became the operating system for the connected world, making sure millions of vaccines were tracked and accurately delivered by UPS to 99.9% effectiveness.

Trackonomy was founded in 2017 with a mission to add intelligence to any object, machine, or process. Drawing on the team’s experiences in semiconductors, software, systems, and components, Trackonomy re-architected and vertically integrated a full computing stack into small, flexible proprietary form factors, like duct tape. The smart duct tape is an always-on smart platform containing hardware, software, cloud computing, edge computing, and AI. 

It’s this smart duct tape from Trackonomy that UPS used to track and monitor millions of COVID vaccines sent around the world during Operation Warp Speed, measuring against a host of different parameters, such as temperature, humidity, shock, and GPS location through the journey. 

“We’re the only vertically integrated solutions provider to go from atoms to bits to neurons,” said Dr. Erik Volkerink, co-founder and CEO of Trackonomy, while on stage at the LogiMed USA 2024 Conference with Daniel Gagnon, vice president of strategy at UPS Healthcare. “With Trackonomy, we’re able to make material logistics KPI optimizations that other people are challenged to do.”

Trackonomy’s vertical integration was crucial to the development of its platform into a solution that was robust enough yet cost-effective enough for UPS, which still uses Trackonomy for its premier healthcare shipping service. 

“Trackonomy allows us to resolve issues faster, better, and in a more economical way,” Gagnon said while on stage. 

Trackonomy’s work with UPS during COVID supercharged innovation through the company. Trackonomy grew its team 20-fold in six months and production capacity expanded 60 fold in just two months. 

“This really required two teams working together with a level of intensity that can only almost be justified by a global pandemic to figuring out a different way to enable the real-time supply chain,” Volkerink said. 

Trackonomy requires no material workflow changes or employee training so it’s easy to use. 

Trackonomy ensured COVID-19 vaccines traveling through UPS’ global network received the enhanced visibility and control they required so that life could return to normal for all of us. It was the project of a lifetime and demonstrated that with Trackonomy, the impossible is definitely possible. 

Trackonomy assembled the best experts in many fields, making it a multidisciplinary innovation powerhouse combined with a mission-driven culture that has the courage to conquer the world’s most challenging problems, help fight the pandemic, and support humanity’s biggest logistics undertaking.