Download PDFDear all,
Actions to deal with the Corona virus are evolving rapidly not only in China but elsewhere. For this reason, we will continue to update your regularly with a series of information regarding the approach taken by Colart and how it is currently affecting our people and operations.
We will be communicating on a weekly basis via Colart News but please make sure you check the Intranet to see any latest updates!
Safety and Health of our people
The health of our people remains our top priority and at this stage we are pleased to be able to confirm that all Colart people and their families in China are healthy. Everyone is following the clear rules for ensuring protection against the virus communicated by the company locally.
Of course everyone’s health across the group is our priority, so regardless of whether you are in China or not please visit this site for further information on how to ensure protection against infection.
We would like to restate our direction that there should be no travel to China or South East Asia unless authorised by Dennis van Schie. Furthermore, if you or a member of your family has visited China within the last 14 days, please contact HR to agree a return to work date which should be no less than 14 days from the date of return.
Opening of our CTAM site
At this stage, we have been advised that CTAM will be able to open on Monday 10th February, however we believe this is unlikely to happen – the direction is changing constantly as China seeks to minimise any spread and we cannot open until we have strict authorisation from the local government. Should the factory opening be delayed it is likely that we will delay the opening of the commercial office in Shanghai in alignment particularly as all of our Chinese customers are not able to open their stores.
If we do open, there will be extremely strict guidelines regulating who can come in and the personal protective equipment we must provide. Face masks are of critical importance and we are experiencing real challenges in purchasing any on mainland China. We would therefore like to thank John Mendryk in the US office who has sourced a quantity of masks for shipment to CTAM. This is likely to be an ongoing challenge so any other ideas for support please contact Jane Beeston.
We are also looking at enabling our people (outside of the factory process in China) to work from home. This is an approach taken by many companies in China to minimise movement and we’re counting on the support of our IT colleagues to make this possible. In the meantime, please recognise that there may be delays in the response from your Chinese colleagues.
Some facts about the virus
We are sure that you have already ready a lot about the Corona virus but click here to read this interesting article from That’s Shanghai.
Update on virus numbers
As of February 7th, the National Health Commission (NHC) announced that the number of confirmed cases had reached 31,214. The number of recovered cases continues to rise with a total number of 1,555 cases, which is more than double the total deaths reported so far at 637.
In Tianjin the amount diagnosed is 81 people with 2 recovered so far and one death. In Shanghai, the numbers are 269 diagnosed, with 30 recovered and one death.
The number of instances outside of China, has grown to 320 across 28 countries. The number of recovered patients is at 22. The most affected countries continue to be within the Asia Pacific region, with the highest reported numbers in Japan (86), Thailand (25), and Singapore (30).
“Come on Wuhan!” – a blog from our colleague Annie Lu
Annie went home to her family in Wuhan for Chinese New Year and has not been able to leave due to the very strict control to minimise risks of the virus spreading. Click here to read Annie’s account as she shares the daily life of people in Wuhan. Annie works for the Commercial team in Colart Shanghai and we are maintaining regular communication with her.
Any questions?
Should you have any questions or thoughts about the current situation please send an email to people@colart.com and we will come back to you as soon as possible
Best regards,
Jane Beeston
Chief People Officer