Q&A: Distribution in the time of corona…
Author : Rob Rospedzhowski | President, EMEA Sales | Farnell
01 January 2021
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The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has had a tremendous impact on how people all across the world live & work – including all those working in the electronics industry. EPDT talked to Rob Rospedzhowski, President, EMEA Sales at electronic components distributor, Farnell to ask him how his firm has fared during the pandemic – and how it has supported customers…
The full version of this Q&A was originally featured in EPDT's H1 2021 Electronics Distribution supplement, included in the January 2021 issue of EPDT magazine [read the digital issue]. Sign up to receive your own copy each month.
Q. How has the pandemic impacted Farnell and its operations?
A. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the way businesses operate and how they interact with customers. The challenges it has posed for our supply chains and customers have been significant.
Countries worldwide have experienced restrictions or limitations in capacity for the movement of goods. Transporting large quantities of parts or final products has been impeded by limitations on flight capacity, forcing manufacturers to utilise sea or land transportation routes, extending lead times. Focus has moved from how cheaply freight can be accessed to whether the required capacity could be obtained at all.
Alongside these challenges, we have introduced new ways of working to protect our people, while supporting our customers. We transitioned office-based staff to a work from home model early in the pandemic, and have continued to ship products to customers throughout lockdown, working closely with our warehouse teams to assure safety: from staggering shift patterns and breaks, to introducing one-way systems and screening to ensure social distancing is possible.
As the second wave hits the UK, we’re armed with experience obtained across our operations globally, and although the nature of this pandemic has been uncertainty, we continue to flex our business to ensure we can continue to provide the service we aim to, for all our customers.
Read the full article in EPDT's January 2021 issue...
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