In a short email circulated by our friends from the Autohub Group, the official importer of Rolls-Royce in the Philippines, it has come to a point where even one of the most luxurious British-based carmakers had to temporarily stop its production for two weeks.
This is, of course, due to the rising cases of the Corona Virus Disease 2019 or COVID-19 that’s been hounding the world over these past few weeks, which may compromise the health, safety, and well-being of not just its workforce, but also its customers. This move will then be followed by an already-planned “Easter Maintenance Shutdown” that will also last for two weeks, effectively holding off the production for a month.
According to Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, “This action has not been taken lightly, but the health and well-being of our exceptional workforce is first and foremost in our minds. We are a tight-knit community at the Home of Rolls Royce and I have no doubt that our resilience will shine through during this extraordinary time.” He continued, “As a deeply customer-focused company we are aware that this decision to pause our production will possibly cause some discomfort or inconvenience to a few of our esteemed patrons, for which we apologize while seeking their understanding at this difficult time.”
But all is not coming to a halt for the brand. That’s because the day-to-day operations of the company will be assured by non-production employees who will remain at work at the company’s head office on the Goodwood Estate in West Sussex or who will work from home on a rotational basis. Social distancing measures have been introduced throughout the company.
Let it be clear that as of the moment, there are no reported cases of COVID-19 positives from Rolls-Royce’s workforce. And here’s to hoping (and praying) that none of its employees will ever catch the pandemic.
Form Rolls-Royce to the world – stay safe, stay sanitized, stay strong, and stay sane. Everything will be okay.
