Dear Valued Customers,
Future Electronics is having regular communication with our suppliers and our logistics service providers to understand how they may be impacted as additional countries continue to be affected by work and travel restrictions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Distribution Center (MADC) remains fully operational - click here for more details.
Read Omar Baig’s Letter to Customers (dated March 26th).
Transportation and Logistics: As the transportation and logistics situation is changing rapidly in many parts of the world, we continue to work closely with our service providers to minimize the impact to our supply chain.
At Future Electronics we continue to work very closely with our suppliers and logistics service providers on our joint plans to ensure we minimize any impact to our customers.The volatile situation that we were in from a transportation perspective is now more stable although we continue to monitor the situation and react and plan accordingly.
Global Air Freight Update:
Some airlines are beginning to reinstate passenger flights although not close to levels seen before the pandemic. The forecast is that passenger flights will not recover to those levels in the second half of this year.Additional freight capacity has been added which has provided some relief but delays of approximately 1 week should still be expected from China, Hong Kong and South East Asia.
Global Ocean Update:
With reduced volume many ocean carriers have cancelled sailings which is causing reduced capacity in the global market. There has been some stabilization in the market from China where blank sailings are being reduced as volume grows. The ocean market remains unpredictable in the coming months due to uncertainty of load factors.
International Parcel Update:
Some weight and service restrictions are still being imposed in the International small parcel market particularly from origins in Asia. While much of the severe backlog that existed in China and Hong Kong has been cleared, some delays should still be expected. The most up to date information can be found on their COVID-19 service information web pages. Links are here: DHL COVID-19 Service Updates and FedEx Coronavirus Service updates
Safety of Packaging: A number of customers have asked us if the virus can be contracted on receipt of a shipment from China. Please see the response from The World Health Organization (WHO) below:
Is it safe to receive a package from China or any other place where the virus has been identified?
Yes, it is safe. People receiving packages are not at risk of contracting the new coronavirus. From experience with other coronaviruses, we know that these types of viruses don’t survive long on objects, such as letters or packages.
What precautions is Future Electronics taking to keep it’s team members and partners safe in affected areas:
We are closely monitoring the situation regionally and meeting daily to update and modify actions plans.
What are the specific actions you are taking in your global distribution centers to prevent supply chain disruption:
In order to minimize and mitigate the possibility of COVID-19 impacting our global operations, we have enacted the following plans effective immediately:
- All non-essential travel has been cancelled.
- All visitor tours have been postponed indefinitely.
- Temperature screening of all team members prior to the commencement of every shift.
- Isolation rooms created to quarantine potentially impacted team members.
- Increased cleaning staff and have been added.
- Workstation wipe downs between shifts.
- Carriers/couriers are prohibited from entering distribution center common areas.
- Additional hand sanitizers, wipes, cleaning product has been purchased, distributed, and are in use.
- Split shifts and breaks where applicable to minimize contact.
What is the duration of these actions:
Our team is fully committed to ensuring the safety of our team members and customer supply chains are not negatively impacted. We will continue with these actions until the WHO and other health organizations suggest that it is safe to resume regular operations.
What are your partners doing to ensure continuity:
Future Electronics is in regular contact with all of our partners to review their action plans, capacity impact, and updated information in near real time.
Note that while we are endeavoring to provide you with up-to-date and accurate information, we are relying on third parties, including governmental and public organizations as well as manufacturers and suppliers, for much of the information provided. We cannot validate this information independently and cannot be held responsible for its accuracy and completeness. Moreover, the situation is fluid and production disruptions and shipping delays are expected. While we will not bear any liability for these force majeure issues which are outside of our reasonable control, we will continue to promptly pass along to our customers any pertinent information we receive from our suppliers and logistics providers.