Effects of COVID-19: Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
I’m watching and learning from global reaction to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s no doubt that some countries have handled it better than others. Some have also had some “nasty surprises” …
The time for “blame games” and recriminations will come later; let’s first learn from the different types of “fallout” we’ve seen. My first article was on “Social Fallout”. After that I wrote about “Supply Chain Fallout”. Travel & Tourism came next, followed by a closer look at the Garment Industry.
We’ve all been hearing about the lack of medical supplies, along with the inevitable questions about “whose fault it is” (someone, after all, must be to blame). So what has happened in regarding medical supplies - or PPE - in particular?
According to The Economist Magazine (21 May ed.), China made half the world’s masks before the pandemic began. Because it had to close itself down, exports of PPE fell by 15%, year-on-year, in January and February 2020. Its production of masks actually increased 12-fold since the pandemic started, but much was diverted for its own use in hospitals and in factories where workers were returning to work.
Another problem was that, when demand surges, extra supply should usually be the result. Due to factory closures and grounding of aircraft, the supply of medical gear has not been able to expand at the unprecedented pace that is needed to keep up. Usually c. 50% of all air freight cargo (on some routes, up to 80%) travels in the holds of passenger planes that are no longer flying. Shipping lines, meanwhile, have cancelled sailings, dropped ports from their itineraries or cannot get into others due to fears of importing COVID-19…
Due to this, medical and care facilities are finding it difficult to meet standing guidelines for wearing and replacing of PPE as supplies are short. Some has to be changed after meeting each patient; others only after the end of each shift. Demand is said to have increased up to 20 times “normal” levels – and this is across the world, not just in any one country.
Several countries are using more conventional methods to keep hold of what they have. The European Union has restricted exports of essential goods to most non-members (some countries had even blocked exports to fellow members until the EU stepped in). The US President ordered restrictions on American exports of PPE in April, including respirators, masks and gloves. Such tactics risk starting a tit-for-tat “beggar-thy-neighbour” spiral.
As a result, we’ve seen alternative suppliers stepping in to make ventilators and PPE: for example, upholsterers and fashion labels make surgical scrubs; auto companies make ventilators, a gin factory in the UK is churning out hand sanitiser.
Adding to the challenge are reports that new shipments of PPE are substandard. Some Chinese-made equipment sent to Europe was rejected. China in response is now requiring exporters to meet importing countries’ standards before goods leave their factories, causing ever more delay.
Whilst we see first-hand the problems confronting the “developed” world, imagine those awaiting the developing and undeveloped world. With little or no domestic production capacity, they will rely on imports of PPE, rendering them hostage to producing countries’ limits on exports. Trade restrictions are also obstructing humanitarian aid, as agencies have to wrangle with governments to get equipment into countries where they are desperately needed.
The halting of the COVID-19 virus will only be the beginning. The recovery will take longer.
I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Crisis Management, Leadership, Productivity, Strategy, Teamwork
posted by William Martin @ 09:01
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