March 2, 2020 - Suzhou (PRC) – Bafang, one of the leading manufacturers of e-mobility components and complete drive systems, has reacted in its own way to the current events surrounding the emergence of the coronavirus.
Following 31 days at first-level alert due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, Jiangsu Provincial Government adjusted the emergency response level to second-level from midnight on February 24th, and many cities in the province, including Bafang’s home-town of Suzhou, reduced the levels of prevention and control. With strong support and encouragement from the government to enterprises to resume production, Bafang took measures to fully restore its supply chain and recommence full production capacity to meet customer requirements.
Medical teams from Suzhou, Bafang’s home-town, had been dispatched to support the efforts in Hubei province to control the coronavirus outbreak. Bafang learned from the Suzhou City Center for Disease Control and Prevention that these teams were in short supply of essential protective equipment, and immediately mobilized all contacts and resources to organize the purchase and delivery of 1.153 sets of professional protective suits, suitable for use by medical personnel in laboratories and infectious disease wards.
This delivery, on February 24th, follows a first donation in early February of protective items including masks, suits and goggles, to areas in Hunan Province, a neighboring province to Hubei, where many citizens from Hubei Province had been stranded, unable to travel home due to strict transportation restrictions.
“Bafang is an enterprise founded in, and growing in, Suzhou. It is our responsibility to help the Suzhou medical team in Hubei and we feel honored to do so. We hope these warriors will return safe and sound,” said Sunny He, Co-founder of Bafang Electric (Suzhou) Co., Ltd.
Keeping production flowing
Bafang middle and senior managers worked hard to resume work as soon as possible after the Spring Break, establishing an epidemic prevention leadership group, led by the General Manager, to make temporary emergency management arrangements, to allow remote working for many staff from February 12th.
• The business team ensured timely communication with customers, prioritizing urgent orders, and with great appreciation of the expressions of understanding and support from many customers.
• As high-tech enterprise strongly focused on research and development, it was a priority to have the engineer team operational. Over 60 R&D personnel were set up to work remotely from home, ensuring the efficient and logical division of tasks via daily video conferences. The Bafang priority experiment center had more than ten test engineers and test equipment working normally, ensuring no delays to projects’ R&D progress.
• Sales and project management teams liaised with overseas customers in Germany, Spain, France, Czech Republic, the Netherlands and the United States, to postpone travel arrangements, instead retaining strong and close contact via video conferencing and collaborative tools to ensure ongoing implementation of R&D and testing tasks.
• Service teams in the US and Europe were supported by the team at headquarters in China via online technology, all working to ensure normal technical support and after- sales service levels.
• Fluctuations in the supply chain system were seen due to the pressure of the epidemic. Bafang ensured regular communication with suppliers; the epidemic management team worked with the suppliers to ensure health and safety, while the quality management team strengthened connections with the suppliers’ quality and technical teams. These measures kick-started the production-recovery process of five key suppliers, to ensure ongoing supply-chain reliability and quality.
At Bafang, the entire company and personnel is hopeful and confident that the epidemic will very soon be effectively controlled, and that emergency measures will be lifted. For more information please visit here.
