The car industry enters phase 2. Ferrari and Fca launch an experiment with virologist Roberto Burioni to protect workers' health. In Italy and around the world, here is a map of who is reopening.
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The car industry is one of the sectors hardest hit by the coronavirus emergency, both because of the halt in production and because of fears that even during the recovery the market could suffer from stagnation for a long time, on top of all the uncertainties surrounding new mobility regulations. In Italy, phase 2 will officially begin on 4 May, and among the businesses that can gradually reopen is the car industry. With one precondition: protecting people's safety. Among the brands thinking about how to restart, Ferrari — having already launched production of valves for lung ventilators and fittings for protective masks inside its Maranello plant — is rolling out the Back on track project for the return to productive activity. This was reported in a video by Report.
Ferrari, together with Fca, has developed the Back on track project. It is an experimental prevention and prophylaxis plan, developed and validated in collaboration with experts and virologists, including Professor Roberto Burioni of the Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele di Milano. The experiment entails implementing the "Protocollo condiviso di regolamentazione delle misure per il contrasto e il contenimento della diffusione del virus Covid-19 negli ambienti di lavoro", reinforced and personalised with specialist support. The project envisages a first phase of voluntary screening of staff — and of their family members and cohabitants, as well as suppliers — medical and healthcare assistance at home in the event of the virus being present, through to insurance coverage and accommodation for self-isolation, as well as the possibility of tracing the contacts of a positive user via a dedicated app. Meanwhile, the gates of Mirafiori are also reopening at Fca, where production of the electric Fiat 500 is restarting.
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The car market, which accounts for 10 per cent of our GDP, has been one of the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic, with production frozen and sales at a standstill. The entire supply chain has been in crisis, from dealerships to services such as car sharing and rental. This is no small setback for a sector already severely tested by the crises of 2008 and 2011, and which in March, according to Acea data — representing the 16 largest car manufacturers active in Europe worldwide — recorded a 55.1 per cent drop in registrations compared with the same period in 2019. The hardest blow was felt by Italy, with a fall of 85.4 per cent, followed by France and Spain, while the shock was less severe in Germany (-37.7 per cent) and the United Kingdom (-44.4 per cent).
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Aware of the difficult months ahead, the major companies have therefore sought to maintain a presence through their sales networks, while at the same time seeking to stimulate purchase incentives — in China, the government has resumed providing subsidies and concessions for the purchase of electric vehicles or plug-in hybrids, the hardest hit by the shutdown — laying the groundwork for the near future. Government interventions have so far focused on the more bureaucratic side, with extensions to deadlines and social safety nets, but to get back on track, trade associations are pushing for liquidity measures for companies and dealers, VAT deductibility for company fleets and an expansion of scrappage incentives — reminding us that Italy's car fleet is the oldest in Europe. New arrangements are also on the way for the dealer sales network, which, in order to protect staff and buyers, is focusing on the roll-out of customer care services and digital sales.
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In Wuhan, the epicentre of the pandemic, the car industry was the first to come to a halt, triggering a domino effect that threw the entire sector into crisis across Europe and the rest of the world. More than two months later, in China, where many European manufacturers have their plants, a large part of production had already gradually resumed towards the end of February, albeit at a reduced pace. Both Asian manufacturers — Hyundai, Kia, Honda and Toyota — and Daimler, General Motors, Psa, Bmw have set their assembly lines in motion again; Fca has reactivated its plant in Guangzhou, the Volkswagen group has reopened 32 of its 33 industrial sites, and Tesla has resumed production of the electric Model 3 in Shanghai.
In Europe, where the automotive sector employs around 14 million workers, the situation on the reopening front mirrors the policies adopted by the various governments. In Italy, Alcantara on the components side (fabrics in this case) and tyre manufacturer Bridgestone have resumed activity, with the reopening of their respective plants in Nera Montoro (Tr) and Bari. At Sevel in Atessa, assembly of the Fiat Ducato has restarted, and alongside the workers in Abruzzo, those in some components departments at the other Fca plants in Melfi, Pomigliano, Termoli and Mirafiori have also resumed work. Production has also restarted for German company Bosch at its Bari plant. Europe too is gradually getting back up and running. After more than a month's stoppage, Škoda is restarting in the Czech Republic, while Seat in Spain is implementing a gradual return to activity at its Martorell and Barcelona sites, introducing PCR diagnostic tests for its 15,000 employees. In Germany the Mercedes network is operational again, while Renault has reopened in Portugal, and Toyota is announcing a resumption in France and Poland, albeit with a reduction in working shifts. Volvo is planning to reopen overseas on 11 May, at its plants in North Carolina. The Swedish manufacturer, having launched production in China at the end of March of Tesla's rival, the Polestar 2 — expected in Europe this summer — has already reactivated production activities in Sweden as well.
By the end of April, a return to normality is also expected for Audi, which has announced a "pan-European restart", given the close interconnection between its network, plants, suppliers and logistics, while engine production at the Győr plant in Hungary has already been ramped up since last week. A detailed timetable concerns the restart of Volkswagen, already operational in Germany with components. From last week, assembly of the electric ID.3 resumed in Zwickau, along with production in Bratislava. An official date is still lacking, however, for another major player in the sector, Bmw: from Munich they have announced that in the coming weeks the other plants around the world will follow the example of those already operating in China.
