Avery Dennison is supporting essential business needs, our employees and communities during COVID-19
In regards to the COVID-19 pandemic, RFID & Wireless IoT Global has conducted an interview with Avery Dennison to discuss the effects on the product and solution portfolio, the consequences on supply chains, as well as the company's active measures to counteract the impact.
Francisco Melo, Vice President and General Manager, Avery Dennison Intelligent Labels, elaborates on the current situation and its implications on business.
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What impact and effects does the COVID-19 pandemic have on Avery Dennison's business?
“Across the corporation, we are proactively supporting our customers and the communities in which we operate. To list all of our actions here would be too much, which is why I would like to point at our recently-launched external website that highlights Avery Dennison’s response to COVID-19, including our global relief efforts, how employees are contributing and more.
With respect to the business impact that differs by division, as an example our label and packaging materials businesses in North America and Europe have seen a surge in demand for essential labeling products while our business serving retail apparel globally has seen a decline in demand due to store closures, more details can be found in our Q1 2020 earnings report."
"Since the pandemic emerged, we have continued to focus first and foremost on the safety of our employees, while working to minimize the impact to our customers. We have leveraged our size, scale and global reach to fulfill orders from alternate Avery Dennison facilities to successfully execute production plans and help ensure business continuity. Combined with Smartrac, Avery Dennison Intelligent Labels has seven manufacturing facilities across China, Malaysia, Germany, Romania, the U.S. and Mexico. We have worked to maintain supply chain continuity for our customers by leveraging this global footprint and flexing production and shipping between facilities where possible."
"In short, as we all navigate the challenges of COVID-19, we recognize the critical role we play within the supply chain, ensuring the flow of goods and products of our customers. That particularly applies to our RFID products which help customers supply essential food, medical, health and hygiene, and safety products to communities across the globe during this critical time.”
What is your estimation: Are the crisis and its consequences the start of large-scale automation to make supply chains more robust in the future?
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“COVID-19 has shed a light on the vulnerability of today’s supply chains. Therefore, it is only logical to assume that more robust supply chains are of public and general economic interest. Yet, we think that it is too early to quantify the effect of that interest. As an example, what is very obvious from our perspective, is a change in the retail landscape and its supply chain where RFID-based “touchless” technologies that enable reduced handling of products and improved efficiency are already becoming the “new normal”.”
What measures is Avery Dennison taking to counter the impact of the pandemic on business development and sales?
“Business development continues and our plans and efforts reflect our expectations of how the industry and world will change as result of the pandemic. At the same time, we continue to deliver industry-leading product quality and service for our customers, while following all guidance from local authorities on protecting the health and welfare of our teams. Due to our large manufacturing footprint, a majority of our manufacturing facilities have remained operational, with only limited temporary COVID-19-induced closures due to government mandates/country lock downs. We have also been able to work with partners such as blockchain company SUKU to deliver NFC authentication solutions for COVID-19 test kits and PPE, as highlighted by a recent press release.“
How do you see the product and solution portfolio positioned, especially for logistics and security applications?
“The Avery Dennison Intelligent Labels portfolio is the largest and broadest portfolio in the market, covering secure and general purpose NFC and UHF solutions, positioning us as the go-to partner for multiple industries including logistics and security. We are confident that the combination of Avery Dennison and Smartrac products and capabilities will play a significant part, globally, in the response to the challenges posed by COVID-19, including supply chain management.”
