Italy’s Raffmetal shuts for two-week quarantine

Italy-based aluminium alloy producer Raffmetal will extend this week's shutdown through next week to allow employees a full two-week quarantine period amid the coronavirus pandemic, president Orlando Niboli said today.

"We have decided to extend the production shutdown for another week in order to allow all our employees to spend the necessary 14-day quarantine period at home, with a view to social responsibility and as an act of awareness and further guarantee of health safety towards our employees and their families," Niboli said.

Raffmetal operates three plants and produces over 250,000 t/yr. The shutdown is not expected to affect product deliveries, while scrap purchases will be rescheduled for later delivery to Raffmetal's facilities.

"We will continue to guarantee ingots delivery service to our customers, [and] our raw material suppliers will be able to resume delivery according to the agreed schedule," the company said.

It added that the nature of the coronavirus pandemic meant that delivery and collection services could change considering the availability of trucks and restrictions to the free movement of goods that various governments may yet adopt in the fight to contain the pandemic. Many borders have already closed for non-commercial traffic.

"The production shutdown of these two weeks can be recovered thanks to the commitment and strength of our organisation," Niboli said. "But I believe that the development of this emergency will radically transform the way we act and operate in a completely new global context that needs to be re-thought."

By Jethro Wookey

source: Argus Media