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March 19, 2020 07:46 AM

Kickstart: Coronavirus hits the plant floor

Rhoda Miel
Managing Editor
Plastics News Staff
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    Reprints Print
    Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
    FCA CEO Mike Manley meets with workers at the Sterling Heights, Mich., assembly plant on March 17.

    If March 12 was the day when coronavirus cancellations became "normal," then perhaps March 18 was the day that a wider shutdown involving business really came into focus.

    For the Plastics News staff, it's been a hectic few days as we touch base with companies to find how they're handling the demands of the crises to both continue serving customers while also keeping their employees healthy.

    And that is all about to get much more complicated as the "Detroit Three" automakers — Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles — announced an agreement with the United Auto Workers to halt production until the end of March. "In these unprecedented times, we're exploring unique and creative solutions to support our workforce, customers, dealers, suppliers and communities," Kumar Galhotra, Ford's president of North America, said in a statement.

    That move will obviously ripple out to their suppliers and their suppliers' suppliers.

    A two-week shutdown isn't out of the ordinary in the U.S. auto industry, of course. Automakers typically close at the end of July each year to retool assembly lines for new products. But this isn't July, and no one was planning for this.

    What happens next? We don't know, but we'll let you know what we find out.

     

    Getty Images/iStockphoto
    Abs 2019-nCoV RNA virus - 3d rendered image on black background. Viral Infection concept. MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV, ТОРС, 2019-nCoV, Wuhan Coronavirus. Hologram SEM view.
    Looking for input

    One of the ways PN provides information to you is through information you give us.

    To try and help us keep up with the overwhelming overload of closures, cancellations and postponements (see this tracker that PN and our sister publications are updating daily on schedules) our data specialist Hollee Keller has created a short survey.

    It's just four simple questions to help us gauge the impact on the plastics industry. Please swing by and add your input. It's at www.plasticsnews.com/virus

     

    Markus Steilemann/Twitter
    Hashtag time

    You obviously know you're not alone in working from home — or perhaps working in a plant with a very decreased number of people.

    But if you're feeling lonely, at least social media is here for you.

    The hashtag #homeofficechallenge invites people to add photos of their, well, home offices. I came across it when Covestro CEO Markus Steilemann posted a photo of his home office. "No exception for the CEO," he noted.

    No exceptions for Plastics News either. So here's a glimpse at how we're putting out next week's print edition as well as regular web updates. Along with some of our not-always-helpful coworkers.

    Hang in there!

     

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