Big data is a term that has been flooding the digital sphere recently. For facilities managers, “big data” may seem like another complex term to learn. However, big data plays an essential role in the growth and expansion of the facilities management sector. For pharmaceutical facilities, data is especially crucial, providing clear, relevant insights into facility performance, quality control, and more. Here, our pharmaceutical logistics software team unpacks big data into small bites, laying out why now is the perfect time for pharmaceutical facilities to drive digital transformation for the future of FM. 

What is Big Data?

Before we dive into how to use big data in your pharmaceutical facility, let’s break down what big data actually means. In short, big data refers to large, complex data sets with such a high volume that traditional data processing software can’t manage them. There are three “Vs” of big data, volume, velocity, and variety. 

Volume: The amount of data that you are handling. Generally, large volumes of data are unstructured, meaning there are no patterns, trends, or graphs to explain it easily. Tools to analyze this harness all of your big data, read it, and generate user-friendly reporting to make this data digestible. 

Velocity: Velocity refers to how quickly data is received and acted on. With outdated software, teams are often placing data in and waiting significantly for that data to be read, even having to generate reports from it manually. With big data analytics software, specifically real-time software such as Intra, data is analyzed, generated, and reported immediately to help streamline business decisions. 

 Variety: Variety refers to the types of data that are available. Outdated databases heavily focus on structured data in a relational database or only provide certain metrics from when it was initially set up. Big data analytics tools provide the ability to customize data variables and reporting for your unique industry needs. 

Quality Control Across Your Pharma Facility

For those working in the pharmaceutical industry, you know that quality control is paramount. There is no room for error within your facility, and extremely specific measures must be taken for the safety of your team, equipment, and assets. Big data is huge for enhancing quality control measures for real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and automated quality checks. For instance, modern facility software can manage specific parameters set by your team, including temperature, electricity, and more. This is essential for pharma facilities with temperature requirements for lab samples and medication, and automated alerts can be generated for any change so corrective action can be taken immediately. 

Additionally, software with asset management capabilities provides insights into predictive maintenance, ensuring that vital equipment is serviced to prevent unexpected downtime. Finally, software like Intra provides automated task management, ensuring that all audits and quality checks are completed, with data history and trend metrics to identify any inefficiencies.

Integrations & Building Management for Pharma

When it comes to implementing new software, one of the most important items to consider is integration ability. 80% of business operations leaders say integration is crucial to their success, and we couldn’t agree more. With Intra, our goal is to replace those pesky point solutions with one comprehensive facilities management system. However, we love integrating with your current industry-specific software to maximize efficiency. Intra is created on an open API, meaning integrations are a breeze! Here are a few of our favorite integrations for pharmaceutical facilities:

•   Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS): LIMS are very specific to pharmaceutical and healthcare facilities and essential to integrate. LIMS often manages lab samples, designing and streamlining workflows. You can integrate with facilities management systems like Intra to provide data on temperature management, storage space, and more. 

•   Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES): MES are crucial to managing pharma operations and controlling manufacturing operations in real-time. For biotech and pharmaceutical facilities, integrating with a logistics solution like Intra provides real-time monitoring and control, so managers have visibility into all aspects of production operations, including optimal manufacturing conditions, resource coordination, and task management. 

Optimize Your Pharmaceutical Facility with SCLogic

Managing data for any facility, especially pharmaceutical facilities, is a daunting task. Ensuring quality control is at maximum efficiency, compliance standards are exceeded, and your team is working strategically can not be done alone. That is why we designed Intra specifically for use in pharma because you deserve a system made for you. Intra streamlines big data collection, providing your team with the resources and tools you need to optimize every aspect of your operation. To learn more about our pharma solutions, email [email protected] or schedule a demo with our team today.