Many companies had to stop or at least cut back production due to the corona virus. Some products are barely in demand at the moment, while others are booming - such as protective equipment. Three industries want to take advantage of this.
Berlin (dpa) - In times of the coronavirus crisis, companies are struggling with order slumps. So what to do with the free capacity?
Some companies are converting their production to protective equipment, which is currently urgently needed. This can also be a way to stay afloat in the crisis. An overview of some companies that have followed this path:
The car supplier ZF in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance has been producing respiratory masks in China since the beginning of March. For this purpose, the company had specially purchased a machine that produces around 90,000 to 100,000 pieces per day, as a spokesman said on request. ZF relies on the masks for its approximately 14,000 employees in around 40 factories in China. The wearing of a face mask at work has been mandatory there since the outbreak of the Sars-CoV-2 pathogen. Without a sufficient supply, production should have been stopped. With the number of pieces produced, it should be possible for the workers to change their masks at least every four hours.
The Bavarian supplier Zettl Automotive also produces respiratory masks, albeit on behalf of the state government. The company actually sews seat covers. For the masks, Zettl is supplied by the nonwoven manufacturer Sandler with material for one million protective masks, as the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs reports. "The finished masks are distributed by the THW to clinics, medical practices and care facilities," says a spokeswoman.
The car supplier Prevent offers the federal government and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia the short-term delivery of protective clothing for doctors and helpers. "Specifically, it's about smocks, protective masks, headgear and protective suits," said a company spokesman. Prevent typically makes car seat covers, among other things. Volkswagen also plans to convert its production and thus support manufacturers of medical technology such as respirators with the construction and supply of its own parts. It is about components that can be produced with 3D printers from plastic parts or prototype production, says a spokeswoman.
The Italian car company FCA plans to convert one of its factories to manufacture respirators. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) then plans to donate the masks to medical personnel. The goal is to produce more than a million face masks per month. According to the company, the protective masks are to be manufactured in an Asian factory.
The Swabian clothing manufacturer Trigema has at least partially converted its production to mouth and nose protection masks. The company has already received orders for more than 200,000 items from hospitals, nursing homes, authorities and others. In order to be able to meet the demand, people also work on Saturdays. The switch to short-time work can be prevented with the production of protective equipment. Because of the Corona crisis, around 50 percent of sales had broken off. "At that point I was not entirely ungrateful that I said haughtily beforehand: I can sew it," says CEO Wolfgang Grupp.
Shirt manufacturer Eterna from Passau in Lower Bavaria has also started to produce face masks in the face of the Corona crisis. In the Slovakian Eterna plant, production was changed to protective masks, as a spokesman said. In the future, up to 25,000 masks will be manufactured every day. The client is the Slovak government.
The Berlin bridal fashion manufacturer Bianco Evento also announces that it plans to sell protective clothing and face masks in the future. Production has already been completely changed over. Around 35,000 masks and 5,000 smocks are to be delivered every week. "From now on, Bianco Evento would like to use all the possibilities of the in-house textile production facility to support clinics, nursing homes, authorities and other medical areas," it says.
Due to the spread of the corona virus, disinfectants are becoming scarce. Alcohol manufacturers therefore want to help out: The spirits manufacturer Jägermeister from Wolfenbüttel, for example, provides the Braunschweig Clinic with 50,000 liters of alcohol to manufacture the drug, as the clinic reports. The beverage producer Berentzen is also checking possible deliveries. One is thinking about supporting manufacturers of disinfectants or making ones themselves, the company says.
The Cologne company Klosterfrau Healthcare (formerly Klosterfrau Melissengeist) wants to donate 100,000 liters of disinfectant to the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. That said NRW Prime Minister Armin Laschet in a special session of the state parliament. As early as next week, the company plans to provide 150,000 of a total of 500,000 bottles of hand disinfectant.
