SCL Cold Chain
SCL Cold Chain is an Irving, Texas-based temperature-controlled logistics provider offering refrigerated trucking, warehousing, and bonded air cargo handling across pharmaceutical, food, wine, and floral verticals, distinguished as the only North American trucking company with IATA CEIV Pharma certification.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersIrving, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What SCL Cold Chain does
SCL Cold Chain is a privately held, specialty temperature-controlled logistics provider headquartered in Irving, Texas, with operational hubs in Houston (IAH) and Greensboro, North Carolina (GSO). Founded in 2013 and operating as an LLC, the company delivers refrigerated trucking — including LTL, full truckload, hotshot/expedited, local pickup and delivery, and small package — alongside 25,000 square feet of multi-temperature warehousing. Its bonded CFS facility at DFW (FIRMS code SEC6) extends service into customs-cleared international air cargo handling. SCL is the only trucking company in North America to hold IATA CEIV Pharma certification (achieved April 2019 in partnership with DFW Airport), and is an FDA-registered facility, making validated pharmaceutical cold chain logistics its strategic anchor.
The company serves four verticals — pharmaceuticals, food (produce and packaged), flowers, and wine — each with specialized handling protocols, temperature setpoints, and regulatory requirements. Pricing is quote-based and transactional, determined by speed, distance, temperature band, and cargo type. Distribution is direct, via company-operated fleets and warehouses, with regional sales coverage at each of its three hubs. Technology consists of conventional sensor-based continuous temperature monitoring, GPS-enabled vehicle tracking, and a WebTrak customer portal for real-time shipment visibility. Marketing relies on industry-specific SEO, blog content, and the CEIV Pharma credential as a competitive lever for enterprise pharmaceutical account acquisition.
In May 2026, SCL was acquired by RealCold, a national cold chain solutions provider headquartered in Lakeland, Florida with over 61 million cubic feet of temperature-controlled capacity. SCL continues to operate under its existing corporate identity with CEO Keith Goldsmith remaining in place, gaining access to RealCold's national platform while contributing pharmaceutical cold chain expertise, CEIV Pharma certification, and FDA-registered infrastructure to the combined entity.
SCL Cold Chain firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SCL Cold Chain
- Legal name
- SCL Cold Chain LLC
- Website
- https://sclcoldchain.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- SCL Cold Chain is an Irving, Texas-based temperature-controlled logistics provider offering refrigerated trucking, warehousing, and bonded air cargo handling across pharmaceutical, food, wine, and floral verticals, distinguished as the only North American trucking company with IATA CEIV Pharma certification.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SCL Cold Chain industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cold Chain Logistics Services
- NAICS
- Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage (493120), Drugs and Druggists' Sundries Merchant Wholesalers (424210), Couriers and Express Delivery Services (492110)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Drugs, Proprietaries & Druggists' Sundries (5122)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Pharmaceutical & Biopharma Cold Chain Logistics (2–8°C, CRT, GDP) (TLAIAIAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Pharmaceutical Cold-Chain Delivery (2–8°C / CRT) (TLAAAJAC), Pharmaceutical & Life Sciences Cold Chain Storage (2–8°C / CRT) (TLALABAF), Biologics, Vaccines & Specialty Pharma Ultra-Cold Delivery (TLAAAJAD), Pharmaceutical Cold Chain & Temperature-Controlled Distribution (CRAOAHAH)
Keywords
Where SCL Cold Chain is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Irving
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
SCL Cold Chain business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Refrigerated Trucking Services: Revenue generated from temperature-controlled trucking services including LTL (less-than-truckload), FTL (full truckload), hotshot/expedited, local pickup and delivery, and small package delivery. Pricing is determined by speed, transit time, distance, temperature requirements, and cargo type. FTL offers lower per-unit cost than LTL. LTL pricing factors in direct pickup/delivery, customs requirements, temperature specificity, and GPS monitoring.
- Refrigerated Warehousing Services: Revenue from temperature-controlled warehousing including cold storage, frozen storage, and cool chain solutions. SCL operates 25,000 sq ft of warehouse space in Irving, TX, serving food, pharmaceuticals, wine, and flowers. Services include short and long-term storage, cross-docking, security for pharma shipments, and on-site staff for cargo management.
- Supply Chain Services: Technology and service partners enable complete visibility and coordination of international and domestic air, ocean, and ground shipments of temperature-controlled cargo, including customs clearance and in-bond shipments.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Quote-based pricing tailored to specific shipment requirements |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
SCL Cold Chain product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SCL Cold Chain provides end-to-end temperature-controlled logistics for perishable and pharmaceutical cargo, including refrigerated trucking (LTL, full truckload, hotshot/expedited, small package, and local pickup and delivery), 25,000 sq ft of multi-temperature refrigerated warehousing in Irving, TX, and supply chain coordination for international and domestic air, ocean, and ground shipments. Services are delivered under FDA-registered, IATA CEIV Pharma certified operations with continuous temperature monitoring, GPS tracking, and customs-bonded CFS handling at DFW for pharmaceutical, food, wine, and floral customers.
Product overview
SCL Cold Chain is a temperature-controlled logistics provider offering a comprehensive suite of transportation and warehousing services. The core offering consists of three main service categories: Refrigerated Trucking (LTL, full truckload, hot shot, small package, local delivery), Refrigerated Warehousing (25,000 sq ft of temperature-controlled storage), and Supply Chain Services (air, ocean, and ground coordination). The company serves four industry verticals—Pharma, Food, Flowers, and Wine—each with specialized handling protocols, monitoring systems, and compliance requirements. The services are delivered through a network of facilities in Irving (headquarters), Houston, and Greensboro, NC, with CEIV Pharma certification and FDA-registered facilities supporting pharmaceutical-grade logistics.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Refrigerated Trucking
Quantifiable outcome
- 85 years combined logistics experience across staff
Companies that use SCL Cold Chain
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
SCL Cold Chain technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
SCL Cold Chain partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- DFW Airport (Dallas Fort Worth)coreSCL Cold Chain partnered with DFW Airport to achieve IATA CEIV Pharma certification, becoming the only trucking company in North America to hold this distinction. DFW was the second airport in North America (after Miami in 2015) to receive CEIV Pharma certification. SCL was one of four companies that partnered with DFW to achieve the certification, alongside Expeditors, B.I.G. Logistics, and dnata Cargo USA. The certification provides a platform to reach larger pharmaceutical organizations.
- ExpeditorsminorOne of four companies (alongside SCL, B.I.G. Logistics, and dnata Cargo USA) that partnered with DFW Airport to achieve IATA CEIV Pharma certification.
- B.I.G. LogisticsminorOne of four companies (alongside SCL, Expeditors, and dnata Cargo USA) that partnered with DFW Airport to achieve IATA CEIV Pharma certification.
- dnata Cargo USAminorOne of four companies (alongside SCL, Expeditors, and B.I.G. Logistics) that partnered with DFW Airport to achieve IATA CEIV Pharma certification.
- Strategic Carrier Partners (nationwide)minorSCL leverages strategic partnerships nationwide to guarantee the best rates for full truckload services, utilizing single driver, team, intermodal, or multimodal transportation choices.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
SCL Cold Chain competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- B.I.G. Logistics: Co-recipient of CEIV Pharma certification alongside SCL at DFW airport. Direct peer in pharma-validated air cargo cold chain handling at DFW.
- Lineage Logistics: Global cold storage and logistics REIT with an extensive network of temperature-controlled warehouses and transport services. Highly comparable to SCL's warehousing + trucking + multi-vertical model.
- AmeriCold Logistics: One of the largest temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics companies in North America. Directly comparable as a public refrigerated warehouse + transport operator serving food and life sciences customers.
- RealCold: Parent company of SCL Cold Chain and a national cold chain solutions provider with 61M+ cubic feet of temperature-controlled space. Directly comparable as an operator of refrigerated warehousing and trucking, though RealCold's footprint is much larger and historically food-weighted.
- FedEx Custom Critical: Time-sensitive, temperature-controlled expedited trucking and air-ground services for life sciences and perishables. Most directly comparable peer for SCL's hot shot, small package, and pharmaceutical expedited offerings.
- dnata Cargo USA: Air cargo handling partner that achieved CEIV Pharma with DFW and SCL. Comparable as a co-certified temperature-controlled air cargo handler.
Broad incumbents
- DHL Supply Chain (Life Sciences): Global 3PL with a major Life Sciences & Healthcare cold chain practice covering pharma grade warehousing, GDP-compliant transport, and clinical trial logistics. Overlaps with SCL's pharma cold chain value proposition at a much larger scale.
- Expeditors International: Global logistics company offering airfreight forwarding for time- and temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical cargo; the fourth DFW CEIV Pharma partner alongside SCL. Comparable as a co-certified pharma logistics provider.
- Kuehne+Nagel (Life Sciences & Healthcare): Global freight forwarder with a significant Life Sciences cold chain practice covering air, ocean, and road transport of temperature-controlled pharma cargo. Comparable to SCL on multi-modal cold chain for pharma.
- UPS Healthcare (Marken): Global integrator with dedicated cold chain capabilities for pharma and biologics including time-sensitive airfreight, packaging, and GDP-compliant storage. Competes directly for validated pharmaceutical cold chain contracts.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
SCL Cold Chain social profiles
Digital presenceSCL Cold Chain compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
SCL Cold Chain financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SCL Cold Chain leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
SCL Cold Chain funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SCL Cold Chain M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SCL Cold Chain
What does SCL Cold Chain do?
SCL Cold Chain provides end-to-end temperature-controlled logistics for perishable and pharmaceutical cargo, including refrigerated trucking (LTL, full truckload, hotshot/expedited, small package, and local pickup and delivery), 25,000 sq ft of multi-temperature refrigerated warehousing in Irving, TX, and supply chain coordination for international and domestic air, ocean, and ground shipments. Services are delivered under FDA-registered, IATA CEIV Pharma certified operations with continuous temperature monitoring, GPS tracking, and customs-bonded CFS handling at DFW for pharmaceutical, food, wine, and floral customers.
Is SCL Cold Chain a public or private company?
SCL Cold Chain is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was SCL Cold Chain founded?
SCL Cold Chain was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is SCL Cold Chain based?
SCL Cold Chain is headquartered in Irving, United States, in the North America region.
How does SCL Cold Chain make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Refrigerated Trucking Services are the primary driver. The others are refrigerated Warehousing Services and supply Chain Services.
Who are SCL Cold Chain's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are B.I.G. Logistics, Lineage Logistics, AmeriCold Logistics, RealCold, FedEx Custom Critical and dnata Cargo USA. Broad incumbents are DHL Supply Chain (Life Sciences), Expeditors International, Kuehne+Nagel (Life Sciences & Healthcare) and UPS Healthcare (Marken).
Does SCL Cold Chain have an API?
No public API is recorded for SCL Cold Chain.
What industry is SCL Cold Chain in?
SCL Cold Chain's product category is Cold Chain Logistics Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is TLAIAIAA, Pharmaceutical & Biopharma Cold Chain Logistics (2–8°C, CRT, GDP), with a secondary code of TLAAAJAC, Pharmaceutical Cold-Chain Delivery (2–8°C / CRT). Its NAICS code is 493120 and its SIC code is 5122.