IPF Webinar focused on challenges before manufacturers as they restart their production plants and also offered probable solutions to mitigate COVID 19 problem.

Operations in manufacturing sector in India came to a complete standstill after the lockdown was announced from March 25, 2020. Realising the importance of starting industrial activity in the country to keep the wheels of the economy moving, the Government decided to allow industries to function under strict government guidelines from the first week of May 2020. However, challenges like lack of demand, financial liquidity and non-availability of workmen remained before the companies who were planning to restart production.

To find solutions to these challenges, Industrial Products Finder (IPF) hosted a webinar - “Restarting manufacturing process - post lockdown” on May 5, 2020, which was moderated by Pratap Padode, Founder & Editor-in-Chief of IPF magazine.

Panelists for the webinar were Lalit Gabhane, Director General, National Safety Council of India; Prof R Jayaraman, Professor of Operations & SCM, Bhavan's SP Jain Institute of Management and Research; Raj Saxena, CEO and Founder of LogisticsNow; Vijayanand Choudhury, Global Procurement Head, Tata Technologies; and Dr Vinod Nowal, Deputy Managing Director, JSW Steel.

According to Lalit Gabhane, in spite of the challenges, manufacturing has to start, otherwise, the supply of goods will get very badly hampered. Manufacturers will have to take all those precautions like social distancing, sanitisation of the premises, building the trust of the employees who come to work.

Unlike other industries, steel plants need to run continuously round-the-clock, especially in areas like blast furnace. If these operations are stopped, it takes at least three to six months to restart or resume the production. 

Sharing the experience of JSW Steel, Dr Vinod Nowal said, “Steel plants need a large manpower. When lockdown was announced, we were producing 34,000 tons every day in our Karnataka plant. For us, switching off was a big challenge. Adhering to the government guidelines required for manufacturing during COVID 19 pandemic is not a problem as we are used to following high safety and hygiene standards. Major challenge is how to manage production with a very lean manpower. Another challenge is when people are coming in with the material from throughout India inside the plant. Though we are adhering to strict sanitation and hygiene standards, it is an area of concern for all manufacturing units.”

With large scale logistics operations now commencing in the country, companies will need to have right strategy for handling logistics and warehouses. Elaborating more this Prof Jayaraman said, “Warehouses vary in shapes and sizes. More tools/equipment should be used to implement no-touch policy to minimise the chances of infection spread. Light forklift trucks can be a good option. Warehouses in the vicinity could come together and arrange a medical team which can take care of healthcare emergency.  All warehouses should ensure proper information and communication mechanism is in operation.”

Communication is important not just within warehouse or warehouses complex, but also outside. “National registry of truck drivers can be established by the center which gives information about the movement pattern of the truck across the country. This could also be used to certify health status of the driver which could be shared with companies and warehouses. This will facilitate smooth inward movement of the truck,” said Raj Saxena.

So, what kind of process planning will be needed to introduce a contact free environment in factory premise? Vijayanand Choudhury answered, “To prevent spread of COVID 19 disease, following social distancing norms is must. Every plant and work place are unique, hence will require separate SOPs. Planning has to be very clean and clear in terms of thinking where the employee is moving. Employees need to be well communicated about the rules and processes which is documented in a manual.”