The temperature taken at goods-in goes on the form, while the recorder file stays on the despatch side. Both describe the same shipment: the form one moment, the file the whole journey. Put side by side once a month, each shows the other's gaps. WHO TRS 961 Annex 9 (Section 9.2.2) asks for the status on arrival and the temperature records, excursions included, to be kept for each batch.
The key for matching is the shipment or route number, the date and the container number. With all three on both documents the match takes minutes; if the container number is not written on the form, the work stays undone every month. If a field is missing, do not treat the match as certain; note the missing field and the document used to verify it.
For time, keep measurement time, the recorder's device clock, file download time and time zone in separate fields. If clock drift is suspected, check the device instructions or a linkable event record.
| Goods-in reading against the record | Possible cause |
|---|---|
| Higher | Lid stood open, reading taken from a surface, goods waited on the dock |
| Lower | Different measuring point: between packs against the core of the product |
| No difference | The two sources back each other |
A difference on one shipment says nothing; a difference that repeats with the same supplier, point or hour points to a method problem. When a file is missing or identifiers conflict, do not count the record as a normal measurement but mark it unresolved: missing data is not evidence of normal temperature.
One line at month end is enough: in how many shipments the sources matched, in how many they did not, and what the mismatches have in common. Because the form stays with the receiver and the file with the sender, agree format and retention at the outset; WHO asks for records to be reviewed regularly by a designated person and kept for the period local law requires, but not less than three years (Section 9.2.3). Do the matching on one side on a fixed day and send the result to the other; done separately by both, the results do not agree.
