The overall objective is to set up a Long-Term Agreement to facilitate and expedite the process by which UNICEF in Pacific will hire individual consultants as required in specific PICs to: a) provide technical assistance in developing a Cold Chain Equipment Management and Maintenance Strategy for Pacific Island Countries; b) conducting a temperature monitoring studies.

The selected consultants will work closely with the Ministry of Health (MoH) in the respective countries, with overall guidance and technical support from UNICEF Pacific Multi-Country Office (MCO). More specifically, the assignment in each country includes:

Task category A – Cold Chain Management and Maintenance Strategy Development

1. Assessment of current state

• Conduct a comprehensive assessment of existing cold chain equipment, including refrigeration units, storage facilities, transport vehicles, and monitoring systems.
• Evaluate maintenance records, historical performance data, and operational practices to identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement including in terms of: i) organization and leadership; ii) procurement, safe discommissioing and disposal; iii) preventive maintenance and corrective maintenance system; iv) human resources; and v) asset management information system.
• An overview of the magnitude of non-functional cold chain equipment piled around the facilities and their implications on the environment on their disposal.
• Conduct a quick review of existing medical equipment maintenance and management system and determine the feasibility of integrated cold chain / medical equipment maintenance and management system.

2. Risk Analysis

• Identify potential risks and failure points within the cold chain infrastructure, such as equipment malfunctions, temperature excursions, power outages, and logistical bottlenecks.
• Assess the potential impact of these risks on product quality, compliance, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction.

3. Based on the above assessment and analysis, draft a country-specific cold chain management and maintenance strategy, considering the following components:

i) Regulatory Compliance:

• Ensure alignment with relevant regulatory standards and guidelines governing the maintenance and operation of medical equipment including cold chain equipment.
• Incorporate regulatory requirements into the maintenance strategy to ensure legal compliance and minimize the risk of penalties or regulatory sanctions.

ii) Maintenance Objectives and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):

• Establish clear maintenance objectives aligned with organizational goals, such as preserving product quality, minimizing downtime, reducing costs, and enhancing customer satisfaction.
• Define measurable KPIs to track the performance and effectiveness of the maintenance strategy, such as equipment uptime, mean time between failures (MTBF), mean time to repair (MTTR), and adherence to temperature thresholds.

iii) Preventive Maintenance Planning

• Develop a preventive maintenance schedule based on equipment manufacturer recommendations, industry best practices, and operational requirements.
• Schedule routine inspections, calibration, cleaning, and servicing of cold chain equipment to proactively identify and address potential issues before they escalate into failures.

iv) Predictive Maintenance Implementation

• Implement predictive maintenance techniques, such as condition monitoring, sensor-based diagnostics, and predictive analytics, to anticipate equipment failures and optimize maintenance schedules.
• Utilize real-time data from temperature sensors, IoT devices, and monitoring systems to detect anomalies, deviations, or early signs of equipment deterioration.

v) Training and Skill Development

• Plan for comprehensive training and skill development programs for maintenance personnel to ensure proficiency in troubleshooting, diagnosis, and repair of cold chain equipment.
• Mechanism to empower staff with the knowledge and tools necessary to perform their roles effectively to foster a culture of proactive maintenance and continuous improvement.

vi) Documentation

• Establish robust documentation and record-keeping processes to maintain accurate logs of maintenance activities, equipment performance, repairs, and compliance audits.
• Document standard operating procedures (SOPs), maintenance protocols, and troubleshooting guides to facilitate consistency and knowledge sharing among maintenance teams.

vii) Continuous Improvement and Optimization

• Monitor and analyze maintenance performance metrics and KPIs to identify trends, patterns, and areas for optimization.
• Regularly review and update the maintenance strategy based on feedback, lessons learned, technological advancements, and changes in operational requirements to drive continuous improvement and adaptation to evolving circumstances.

Task category B – Temperature Monitoring Study

1. Facilitate the temperature monitoring study which will follow the WHO Protocol (WHO/IVB/05.01) and UNICEF Temperature Monitoring Study Handbook, developed in 2015 to help immunization programs and consultants collect, analyze, and report temperature monitoring study data more easily. Temperatures will be continuously monitored as vaccines move through the cold chain from primary stores to outreach delivery sites.

• Identification of the sites for study based on geographical, coverage, and other factors
• Identification of study vaccine (Hep B and Td) to be included in study boxes
• Preparation of monitoring sheet and instruction sheet to accompany study boxes
• Preparation of study boxes
• Orientation of staff at National Vaccine Stores
• Planned orientation of staff at Sub National level, and Health Centre about the study
• Focus interview of staff at all levels at the end of the study
• Conduct the shake test to confirm the study results
• Consolidate data and finalize the report, including findings at all levels, identify factors affecting quality of cold chain and recommendations.

Please refer to the ToR ( TOR CCEM Strategy.pdf) for further information on the deliverables and the timelines.

Requirements:

• Education:
• A Master’s degree in Public Health, Epidemiology, Engineering, Supply chain, Public Health Policy, Global/International Health/ or other related fields

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills Required

The consultant tasked should have the following experiences and essential skills:

• At least eight years of experience, at the national and international levels, in supply chain management, cold chain management, logistics, equipment maintenance and management, or operations management, and experience in immunization/public health programmes.
• Experience in planning, procurement, installation, commissioning, maintenance, training, monitoring, risk assessment and boarding of medical equipment is preferrable.
• Familiarity with cold chain systems, effective vaccine management, inventory policies, logistics, outsourcing, segmentation strategies, integration of health products, and other system design strategies.
• Demonstrated experience in conducting EVM assessments, development of equipment maintenance plans, and temperature monitoring study.
• Proven expertise in providing training, implementing, and monitoring immunization and/or health programs.
• Ability to work in a multidisciplinary team and have the initiative to work independently to meet deadlines.
• Strong interpersonal communication and writing skills, with the ability to lead/train a group of individuals and impart knowledge.
• Skills in adult training methodology are strongly preferred.
• Proficiency in English, verbal and in writing
• Computer skills, including quantitative analysis and reporting tools.

Language:

Fluency in English is required and knowledge of a local language would be an asset.