Coronavirus pandemic has impacted every aspect of our lives, from everyday situations and our mindsets in general to the global market and economy. Some industries were more affected than the others, and there is a whole range of travel-related ones which have suffered the most, besides the ones in the entertainment industry. This happened due to the fact many countries have closed their borders during the peak of the virus spreading, and there were movement and travel restrictions even before and after lockdowns. Considering that many businesses operate on a global level nowadays, lack of importing and exporting options have indirectly affected significantly more segments of various operations.
Initial impact
Let’s start by defining which processes do logistics and freight industries include, in order to better understand how strong was the initial impact. We are basically talking about the larger aspect of the transportation industry, which is further segmented by its main function. These segments can vary from agriculture, oil and gas, manufacturing, pharmaceutical and many others. Every transportation variable actually operates within the logistics industries, which include all the steps from planning to implementing efficient obtaining, storing and distributing of goods. Transportation part can happen via water, air or land, but the idea is that we have a systematic organization of products from their source and national warehousing to their endpoint, or delivery to consumers.
Now you can see how the closing of various borders had an immense impact on the supply chain. Various goods have been somewhere in the middle of the process when the pandemic hit us, which caused numerous complications regarding documentation, damage control and tracking in general. Delays started being a new normal, while the demand started growing. Such slowdown in the world traffic is yet to show us all the consequences for both regional and global freight infrastructure.
Scope of disruption
Many people started looking for options other than their favourite and regular ones while shopping. Some have switched to buying local products since various usually imported goods simply weren’t available. Some others have experienced e-commerce advantages for the first time, and a large percentage of the group liked the experience and will continue this trend even after the pandemic is over and their usual items are back in stock. We must understand the importance of the mental health aspect to fully understand that. In-store shopping is for a while now something we are all afraid of, a potentially disastrous move which can result in being infected with a deadly virus.
Experts are emphasizing rules of social distancing, and this can only result in the second wave of a strong impact on the logistics industries with a decrease in demand. The exact scope of impact will largely depend on the size of a company, but it can only range from high to severe. No one could have predicted such circumstances, and it is extremely debatable what will happen in legal terms, regarding contracts and other operational plans and their deadlines. Most of the smaller businesses were not able to afford the great losses that have happened and are less likely to survive the crisis and stay in the game.
Response and recovery
Some governments have offered various aids and grants to the most affected industries, among which is the logistics. Extension of deadlines for deliveries has been made in some cases, while in others we have the annulment options under the “act of God or other unexpected circumstances” clause. Repercussions and financial damage will also depend on the ratio of the mentioned. When it comes to air travel, there was a mitigating factor that while airports were closed for passenger travel, some still offered cargo transport, as face masks and other medical equipment and supplies needed to be delivered despite everything.
The whole situation is undoubtedly frustrating, and there will be financial repercussions in revenues for this year but bear in mind that the most important thing is not to risk anyone’s health. The chances of getting infected with COVID-19 are already high in everyday activities, such as grocery shopping, so under no circumstances should a company send workers outside of borders without proper instructions and training in infection prevention and control. Everyone should have all the necessary information at all times, and be provided with both guidelines and safety equipment.
Managers should make sure that all the equipment is sanitized and that everyone is working at a required physical distance. Working in teams is highly discouraged, and anyone who spent some time outside of the country should provide a negative test to COVID-19 before coming back to work. There should be posters describing symptoms in every room, and all the workers must report if they are experiencing any of them. Workplace hygiene and employees’ health must be the top priority!
Conclusion
Process of recovery will be long, and it will vary from country to country. We will all need to be flexible and adapt to various surrounding factors and regulations as a response to the after-pandemic period. Furthermore, almost all the protocols will be at least altered in the cross-border controls. Some innovations also might be supported and encouraged more, such as contactless delivery methods. Digital and technological advances will probably allow for such changes, but then another issue is brought out, how many people will lose their jobs because of it? We don’t have answers to all the questions, as this uncertainty still hangs in the air, and the pandemic is unfortunately not over yet. We can only do our best to stay safe, learn from our mistakes and try to create a better strategy for future reference.