Corona Virus or Covid-19 has undoubtedly turned the world in which we live, work, socialize, learn, and play upside down. As I write this in the last week of March, we are starting a 4-week shutdown of our manufacturing facility in New Zealand and a 2-week shutdown period for both Indianapolis and Australia. Management are doing all they can to recognize and prepare staff and customers for all the knock-on effects of this shutdown – annual leave with or without pay, lay-offs, redundancies, the list goes on. So, how do we manage the doom and gloom while staying focused on the subject at hand – “Life under crazy circumstances for a machinery manufacturer!”
For us over here in New Zealand, our Prime Minister has “gone hard and gone early,” the catch phrase of the minute! Love it or hate it, we have to respect that a decision has been made and run with it we shall. 28 days isolation – “please don’t leave the house,” nothing but essential industry is to operate, also no gatherings of more than 5 people (people you are housed with only), please stand 2 metres apart and so on… Do this for the next 14 to 28 days and we believe we’ve got this devil licked! Don’t comply with the order and isolation will go on for longer, the consequences all the more dire to business and New Zealand health and well-being in general, plus a swift and harsh penalty for those who disobey, i.e., a cold hard cell somewhere!
There are obviously questions in everyone’s mind, how long will this go on, should we stockpile groceries, can we live through this? For most of us, there may be hardships of a degree we have never experienced. But we can liken this to the Depression or World Wars I and II, and we should consult all who remember and lived through those for just how to do so with grace, kindness, dignity, and a sense of purpose.
We will survive, we will rally, we should be kind, and we will support those who need it, our vulnerable, our elderly, our less fortunate.
And, at the same time, we will continue to work at our businesses and prepare them for the ongoing challenges. So, what else are we doing at Spida Machinery?
Our in-house Engineers are looking closely at existing machinery to improve and modify, based on customer feedback and development – in production efficiencies and procedures. Research and Development is still at the forefront, now more than ever. The opportunity to do things better and more efficiently is uppermost in our minds, given that in some circumstances our labor force may be depleted when we return to “normal.” How do we return to our production heights of the past? We look at how/where we can utilize our people in their best possible circumstance. Can we save a workman in our process here or there? Provide efficiencies, processes, robotics, technology, materials handling, the list of alternatives goes on and on. Suffice to say we are looking at this whole production quandary.
We have already reduced the need for labor by one person, sometimes two, with our PieceMaker Linear Saw. Likewise, the labor of two and sometimes three has been saved (excluded) from our framing production line, depending on the length of the line and where you drop your components/windows, heads in. Our bunk system is heavy on savings as well – just put your pack of timber on the line and feed from there. Sheathing is another process that frees up your workers – a one-touch operation to sheath a wall. The list of machinery to review, to save manpower, to save time, to increase production is available now, with so much more on the drawing board. www.spida.com is the place to visit, then drop us a line and we can discuss how it can all come together in your plant.
So, for me, sitting in the home office, looking out at the world, these are strange times. I am here now for the next 28 days, but I know I am not alone. We are in this together, so be kind, be generous, help those less fortunate, stay well, and reach out if you need to. wendy@spida.com.