COVID19
ABOVE: JCB has announced a
partial reopening at fi ve of its
UK factories with extensive
safety measures
RIGHT: Sears Seating’s
Davenport, Iowa, factory
usually makes seats for
industrial vehicles, but
during the pandemic it has
instead been used to make
PPE for local hospitals
to the essential nature of construction
work. “It is clear that we are now
entering a tough period, with both
production stops and low demand
having a negative impact on our
pro tability,” he says. “ at said, we
take con dence in the fact that our
customers are active in businesses that
are important to society, and that our
products and services are vital in
building sustainable infrastructure
for the future.”
According to the National
Development and Reform
Commission of the People’s Republic
of China, 90% of key construction
projects had resumed in China during
the last week of March, albeit with
social distancing in place and the
disinfecting of workplaces between
shi s. With construction resuming,
China’s Haulette subsidiary is
redoubling its e orts to deliver mobile
elevating work platforms all across the
country and is said to be busier than
ever to meet customer demands.
Meanwhile Doosan received orders
for 32 medium-sized, 22-metric ton
grade excavators from two large
Chinese construction rms, planned
for use in infrastructure construction
in Changchun, where a subway,
expressway and bridge are being built.
With accumulated sales through
February reaching 14,000 excavators,
the Chinese excavator market shrank
by half compared to the same time last
year, but then returned to the previous
year’s level as 40,000 excavators were
sold during the month of March.
Opening up
With a central focus on employee
health and safety, CNH Industrial has
resumed manufacturing operations.
At the time of going to press already
dedicated website www.
engineeringheroes.co.uk, you can read
some of the amazing stories of hope
and take inspiration from the people,
companies and technologies that have
proven the versatility and altruism of
engineering rms during this
unprecedented time.
The dragon’s back
In terms of recovery to a point where
OEM production lines are in full use
for their originally intended purpose,
the rest of the world can look to China
for signs of hope. While the rst two
months of the year saw a slump as
Covid-19 hit, as restrictions were li ed
in March, so demand for construction
vehicles climbed to 2% above the same
period in 2019.
Volvo Construction Equipment has
signi cant operations in China, and
president Melker Jernberg is able to
see a light at the end of the tunnel, due
“IT’S NOT JUST FARMING THAT
NEEDS TO BE PART OF THE
CRITICAL SECTOR, BUT
AGRICULTURAL
MACHINERY, TOO”
Jérôme Bandry, secretary general of CEMA,
the European Agricultural Machinery organisation
18 iVTInternational.com June 2020
/engineeringheroes.co.uk
/iVTInternational.com