PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2020

TOP TALK PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 06/20 www.petpla.net 12 development work even possible under present circumstances? Bernardi: Without a doubt, albeit with the necessary precautions. All those who can conduct their business from home will still continue to do so. For those who work in the lab where we develop and test all new capsule developments - including work on tethered caps - we’ve divided the work into two 8-hour shifts so we can work in complete safety on all the development projects included in the original program. PETplanet: What about your order books? Do you feel that your customers are currently holding back on purchasing decisions? Bernardi: Unfortunately, the crisis is a global one that extends far beyond the borders of Italy and Europe. In its truest meaning, the word ‘crisis’ signi fi es change: in the way we work, consume, live. In China, for example, where the recov- ery has already begun, our custom- ers are manufacturing at 80% capac- ity and the curtailment of in-country travel is shifting consumption from small-format drinks to public vending machines or larger formats. In any case, the fact that Chinaplas - a long- standing plastics fair held in April, the ideal time to understand the produc- tion needs of the Chinese market - was cancelled, leads us to view the ongoing recovery with a degree of caution. In India, the total lockdown, now expected to last until early May, has also shut down production in the bev- erage supply chain. Here, our custom- ers kept on manufacturing while ware- house stocks lasted, then closed their factories. Even in Africa - affected to a lesser extent by contagion as such - travel restrictions prevent people from buying drinks from the street stalls that constitute the bulk of the conti- nent’s ‘retail outlets’. Moving on to the United States, millions of people have been placed under lockdown and lost their jobs in the space of just a few short weeks. This will inevitably impact consumption and, consequently, the investment choices made by the industry’s multinationals, triggering a cascade effect that reaches our customers. In any case, we believe it’s too soon to assess the real impact of the situation on our sales. A lot will depend on the how long the recov- ery takes and how it unfolds, on when investors - and, more impor- tantly, end consumers - start to feel confident again. PETplanet: In Germany, more than half of all companies applied for short-time working. Does this possibility exist at your company locations and if so, do you make use of it? Bernardi: In Italy too, many companies, ours included, are taking advantage of the social safety nets provided for by current legislation. These include cassa integrazione, which provides pay- ment for furloughed workers, and the use of backlogged holidays as we seek, in every way possible, to compensate for the production slowdown or, in many cases, par- tial or total production stoppages. Clearly, such emergency measures are not sustainable in the long run, as company resources are limited and even state coffers are not bot- tomless. Hence the need to prepare for a safe restart as soon as pos- sible. PETplanet: What other support- ing measures would you have liked to see from your government or the EU? Bernardi: I am, with good reason, worried that, even after any recovery, all the companies in the supply chain will have liquidity and volume issues and that it will take a long time to get back to pre- Covid levels. During this Phase 2, it may simply be unfair to apply the usual economy and company per- formance indicators. Of course, in the short term it will be essential to make good use of all the available tools, such as the export financing support plan (SACE), in a broader, more streamlined way than in the past. PETplanet: When do you expect the economy to recover? Bernardi: I’m no expert in macro- economic analysis. However, I do read in-depth studies on our industries on a daily basis. My own opinion is that we’ll see an economic recovery in the last quarter of the year, but if we’re looking at a ‘return to normal’ we’ll have to wait until at least the second half of 2021. PETplanet: In our last editorial in PETplanet 5/2020 we published a guest article by Erik Eichler, the pro- duction manager of Hansa-Heemann AG, Germany. In it, he highlighted the efforts of the PET bottling industry and at the same time pointed out that this situation should be used as an oppor- tunity to improve the public image of the PET bottle. How do you think the image could change, and the hygiene and logistical advantages of plastics could become the focus of public attention in the long term? Bernardi: I fully agree with Mr. Eichler, for a clear reason. Our prob- lem is not plastic, but its dispersion into the environment and incorrect recycling-disposal methods. We should take this opportunity to make people more aware that plastic, espe- cially PET, is crucial to the survival of 10 billion people, that is, the number of people who will, in the space of a few decades, soon be living on earth. In such a scenario, developing a circular economy is a must, a strat- egy vital to the survival of our spe- cies and the protection of our shared home, planet Earth. Hence our belief that plastic can and should play an essential role on account of its low cost, the ease with which it can be recycled-reused and, in essence, the possibility of its reintegration into the chain of environmental resources that are essential to our lives, health and well-being. PETplanet: Thank you very much, Mr Bernardi!