Pharmaceutical temperature-controlled specialist Tower Cold Chain has secured £6.75million in investment, to reinforce the business as the leader in robust, reliable, and reusable cold chain solutions, following a period of rapid and sustained growth.
The investment, backed by Investec, comes only two years after an initial injection of £6million into the business. That funding has helped Tower to grow its container stock exponentially, to double its employee base around the world, and to develop its global footprint via its network of strategically located hubs – a platform of success on which the latest investment will build.
Investec’s decision to back further funding reflects Tower’s growing reputation amongst pharmaceutical manufacturers, third-party logistics (3PL) providers and airlines – as well as wider recognition, such as receiving the Queens Award for International Trade in 2022.
Investec’s Jonathan Wynn said: “Our investments into Tower have been carefully structured to future-proof the businesses’ capital needs to deliver its highly compelling growth trajectory. We believe Tower is optimally positioned to provide the solutions necessary to meet the challenges of its blue-chip customer base in the global pharmaceutical sector. The benefits of the proven technological excellence of Tower’s container fleet coupled with its dynamic customer service offering are becoming increasingly well recognised by the major industry players. This capital helps further expand and enhance the container fleet to service the resulting growth in customer demand.”
The original investment in Spring 2020 took place, coincidentally, against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic – an event that proved the value of Tower’s solutions for transporting critical pharmaceuticals such as vaccines around the world. Likewise, Tower’s focus on reusable, multi-use containers that require no external power source, chimes with a global societal shift towards solutions that are more sustainable.
“We’ve come a long way since the initial investment, and the new funding allows us to continue our upwards trajectory. The trust and confidence
from Investec and our shareholders provide us the freedom to respond to customer needs and market challenges, quickly and effectively,” explained Niall Balfour, CEO of Tower Cold Chain.
As well as manufacturing more stock and expanding into new hubs to fuel rising demand, Tower will also invest in digitalisation to add further value to its proposition. “Tower’s mission is to provide pharmaceutical cold chain solutions that are robust, reliable, and reusable. We’re looking at ways to implement the latest digital capabilities, such as IoT, into our operation to strengthen these qualities,” confirmed Niall Balfour.
Tower recently opened a Centre of Excellence at its global HQ in Reading, England. The company now plans to replicate this model in the Americas and APAC regions. Developed as innovation hubs, these Centres of Excellence will lead Tower’s drive towards product diversification – seen most recently in the launch of the KTEvolution™ concept for smaller shipments such as clinical trials and direct-to/from-patients.
“We’re looking at several exciting projects that will deliver even more value to customers, while remaining true to Tower’s core principles of being robust, reliable, and reusable. We’re grateful to Investec for recognising our continuing potential, and we look forward to delivering on their trust in our business,” concluded Niall Balfour.
