SAUL WORDSWORTH, IVT INTERNATIONAL
begins The fightback COVID19 COULD BE THE GREATEST CHALLENGE THE
OFFHIGHWAY INDUSTRY HAS EVER FACED BUT IT
IS ALREADY CHARTING A WAY THROUGH THE CRISIS
Covid-19 is a global crisis with
a di erence. While e Great
War, the Great Depression and World
War Two wreaked the most terrible
devastation and havoc in their time,
populations were still free to roam,
meet for a beer and, crucially,
encouraged to work at all times. But
when the world went into lockdown,
many industries ground to a halt.
“ e e ects, short-term, from the
coronavirus outbreak are of course
very serious,” says Riccardo Viaggi,
secretary general of CECE. “Supply
chain disruptions have been in place
for a few months and may be felt more
as time passes.”
But, as lockdowns are eased and
economies jump back to life, how will
the o -highway vehicle industry move
back into a position of growth, and
even strength, as the post-lockdown
world is de ned?
Firstly, there is reason for cautious
optimism as the industry came into
the pandemic during positive market
conditions – 2019 was a good year for
OEMs in terms of sales. Furthermore,
in the medium term, there is the very
real prospect of signi cant nancial
support from governments, to help the
industry get back on its feet.
Earlier this month a joint
declaration by the FIEC (European
Construction Industry Federation)
and the ECB (European Central Bank)
called for a dedicated budget of at least
€320bn to be put aside to support the
construction industry in Europe.
Citing the impact that Covid-19 is
having, the two organisations
suggested the gure as a way to
compensate the pandemic impact and
improve the life European citizens.
“ e impact (of Covid-19)
will be enormous considering the
construction ecosystem is worth 20%
of the EU GDP and employs over 16
million Europeans,” runs the statement.
Mission critical
Away from construction sites, the
other major sector for o -highway
vehicles, agriculture, has never
stopped. Indeed, there are now calls
for special protection to be o ered to
the machines and related supply
chains that are so crucial to putting
food on our tables.
“Many OEMs have had to limit or
even stop their production because
they are missing components due to
supply chain disruptions, or because
16 iVTInternational.com June 2020
/iVTInternational.com