Coronavirus impacts rubber industry: News you may have missed

The coronavirus pandemic continues to worsen across the globe, sickening at least 413,500 people and prompting business closures in an attempt to protect employees and stop the spread of the outbreak, which has claimed more than 18,400 lives as of March 25.

The impact is being felt by tire makers everywhere as they take recommended health and safety precautions while adjusting to disruptions in their manufacturing operations and the entire supply chain. But they aren't alone in feeling the impact of the pandemic.

Here's a look at 10 things you may have missed in recent days:

1. Your work is 'essential'

The Department of Homeland Security recently released a report detailing which industries and services were considered to be essential during a time of crisis. And the chemicals industry is among them.

Dow Inc., which operates a plant in Plaquemine, La., continues operations, but has stepped up its safety efforts after a worker there was diagnosed with COVID-19.

Also considered essential, Polymer Technologies Inc., which makes noise control and energy management products, continues production during the coronavirus outbreak.

Meanwhile, rubber testing equipment company MonTech USA remains open in Columbia City, Ind., as an essential business for critical products and industries.

Also recently, Flexicon Corp. has been granted a waiver by the state of Pennsylvania to continue operating during the COVID-19 outbreak because of its role in the supply chain for life-sustaining businesses.

2. You can help

The editorial board at our sister publication, Automotive News, pointed out that automotive industry suppliers may be in a unique position to help as the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S. continues.

The personal protective equipment used in many manufacturing facilities "can be immediately repurposed to protect local health care workers as they struggle to care for patients fighting this deadly infection," the editorial board wrote. All it takes is a donation.

Semperit Group is among those donating supplies to those on the front lines of the pandemic fight. The Vienna-based company said it is sending 60 million gloves from its Sempermed production facility in Malaysia to Austrian medical workers.

At the same time, FRX Polymers Inc. is working with the Chinese American Association of Lexington to purchase disposable masks that have been donated to "nursing homes and frontline medical and health organizations."

Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is donating medical equipment to health care workers in Lombardy, Italy. The donation consists of 65 ventilators for intensive care therapy, 5,000 protective suits for health care workers and 20,000 face masks.

3. New vehicle sales plunging

J.D. Power estimates that new car sales could fall by as much as 45 percent in March, compared to the year before. And that's just the start.

We're just now seeing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, J.D. Power noted, which means the months ahead could be far worse.

4. ETRMA urges EU to help tire makers

The Brussels-based European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers Association has asked the European Union to enact policies that will help the nation's tire manufacturers through major issues caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The industry is taking all necessary steps to protect their employees and communities, including the temporary closure of tire production facilities, ETRMA said in a March 24 press release.

"The suspension of the main operational activities will undoubtedly have severe, long-lasting reverberations for our industry," ETRMA Secretary General Fazilet Cinaralp said in statement. "This is one of the biggest challenges our industry has ever faced, and it is as yet unclear when the European tire industry will be able to resume its production activities and the international supply chain will be up and running again."

5. Ineos makes hand sanitizer

Ineos has disclosed plans to build two hand sanitizer factories in just 10 days as part of the effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The material will be produced according to World Health Organization specifications and be specifically designed to kill bacteria and viruses. The company will produce both standard 250ml size containers and 50ml pocket bottle size packaging, both of which will be available from retailers as soon as possible.

6. Continental 'adapts' production

Continental A.G. is "adapting" production at some of its plants across the globe in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, saying "the situation remains highly dynamic."

The fourth-largest tire maker globally said it has ramped up its inventory during the last few days and has "well equipped" warehouses.

Continental has about 6,500 hourly workers at U.S. plants in Mount Vernon, Ill.; Sumter, S.C.; and Hinds County, Miss., as well as one in Mexico.

7. Italian machinery makers still operating

Amaplast, Italy's trade association for the plastics and rubber manufacturing sector, said plastics, polyurethane and rubber machinery makers are exempt from Italy's coronavirus lockdown scheduled for March 25-April 4.

Companies still operating must show that they are limiting production to activity considered "essential."

Amaplast said there are some delays to the supply of materials and components, but deliveries of machinery continue.

8. Nokian, Hankook and Kumho suspend production

Nokian Tyres P.L.C. will halt production for at least two weeks starting March 27 at its plant in Dayton, Tenn., in an effort to safeguard the well-being of employees and the southeast Tennessee community during the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision came a day after Nokian said the plant would remain open, but hiring for new positions would be suspended.

During the closure, employees will be furloughed temporarily, and the offices and production equipment will be cleaned. Company officials will evaluate the unfolding situation to set a date to reopen.

The company also plans to adjust production at its Vzevolozhsk, Russia, plant, and has opened negotiations with employees at its operations in Finland about possible temporary layoffs amid the COVID-19 outbreak and slow demand in Europe.

Hankook Tire & Technology Co. Ltd. said it will stop production at its tire plants in Clarksville, Tenn., and Raclamas, Hungary, starting March 30, to protect employees from the coronavirus. The Seoul, South Korea-based company said its U.S. warehouses, including the one located at the Clarksville plant, will continue to operate.

Kumho, meanwhile, said it would begin to close down its tire manufacturing facility in Macon, Ga., as part of a response to the COVID-19 spread throughout the U.S. During the plant's closure, Kumho said the facility will cleaned and disinfected.

9. Some tire production continues

Titan International Inc. will keep its U.S. tire plants open in order to support the "essential" food and agricultural industries amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Quincy, Ill.-based company produces Titan- and Goodyear-branded farm tires and Titan wheels that are used to plant, maintain and harvest crops.

Giti Tire (USA) Ltd. is continuing to operate its factory in South Carolina and three U.S. distribution centers without interruption during the COVID-19 pandemic but is prepared to make "necessary adjustments as needed in a timely manner."

Meanwhile, Kenda Rubber Industrial Co. Ltd.'s tire plants across the globe are operating and shipping products to the company's original equipment and aftermarket customers in the Americas, according to its U.S. subsidiary, Kenda Tire USA Inc.

Nexen, also, is keeping its operations moving along.

10. Worth a listen

There are a lot of unknowns as the rubber and plastics industries work to navigate a pandemic like the one we face today.

For his podcast, our Publisher Brennan Lafferty, talked with Troy Nix—the executive director of three associations: the ARPM, the Association for Rubber Products Manufacturers; MAPP, the Manufacturers Association of Plastics Processors; and AMBA, the American Mold Builders Association—about what is ahead of us.

In this time of crisis, Nix said the No. 1 concern of most small- and medium size businesses is taking care of its employees. "That's first and foremost," he said, "because we're going to come out of this and we're going to come out of it with a vengeance."