Corona crisis: FIEGE to distribute protective equipment for medical staff on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Health

The logistician FIEGE is distributing urgently needed personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical staff working across Germany on behalf of the country’s Federal Ministry of Health (BMG). First face masks and other PPE such as protective gowns, gloves and full-body suits as well as disinfectant have been shipped these past two weeks to the regional agencies of the Associations of SHI-accredited Physicians as well as central storage facilities of the Länder or handed over to the federal authorities.

Jens Spahn, Germany’s Health Minister: “Our goal is to protect those fighting the spread of coronavirus on the frontlines of medical practices, hospitals and nursing homes as best as possible against infection. For this reason, the Federal Ministry of Health now engages in buying urgently needed personal protective equipment centrally. Around 37 million face masks reached Germany before the end of this week. Millions more are on their way. I would like to thank all those involved in helping to procure and distribute ample personal protective equipment for our medical staff in a fiercely embattled global marketplace.”

“Our express procedure takes personal protective equipment first thing in the morning from Shanghai (China) onto planes for next-day delivery to all Federal Länder“, says CEO Jens Fiege, who together with his cousin, Felix Fiege are the fifth generation to head up the family business. “This is an incredible challenge that we can only conquer by working together. All partners are cooperating closely and trust in the others to do their part: from the supplier in Asia, to TÜV, the customs authorities, Lufthansa Cargo, the German Federal police force and the BMG as our client, to the recipients in the individual Federal Länder. This is our contribution as a logistics company towards overcoming the coronavirus crisis.”

FIEGE coordinates the deliveries from the various suppliers and manufacturers of PPE to the airports in China, oversees customs clearance and then has the PPE normally flown out to Germany by its Lufthansa Cargo partner. TÜV Nord verifies the quality of the products directly on location in China. FIEGE transports the PPE with a police escort from the German airports to a central transhipment point where the equipment is prepared overnight under maximum safety and hygiene standards for delivery to the Associations of SHI-accredited Physicians and the Länder, using the BMG’s precise distribution key. The equipment is then delivered Germany-wide within a few hours. This express procedure will continue until the regional hubs of the Federal Länder and Associations of SHI-accredited Physicians have been able to sufficiently stock up their much needed supplies. Even the routine procedure guarantees that TÜV-tested and released equipment which reaches the distribution bases throughout the day is sent out the following day.