Farmers Review Africa March/April 2020 Farmers Review Africa March - April 2020 digital ( | Page 17
FEATURE
Global teamwork procures masks
for Cummins employees in China
P
utting their job skills to work, Cummins
employees from Johannesburg to
Columbus, Indiana in the US sprang into
action in February, and procured more than 500
000 protective masks for their fellow employees in
China. Chinese residents must wear respiratory
masks when in public as the first line of defence
against the spread of the novel coronavirus
(COVID-19). “A lot of colleagues across the world
have provided great support in helping us source
masks,” Steve Chapman, Cummins’ Group Vice
President, China and Russia, comments.
“The procurement of the 500 000 FFP2 masks
not only ensures the protection of our employees’
health and safety, but also helps us remove one of
the major obstacles for the business continuity of
our operations in China.” Groups within Cummins,
including Indirect Purchasing and Manufacturing
teams within the company’s Supply Chain
organisation, as well as the Distribution Business’
Global Operations, aggressively reached out to
potential suppliers, and identified other resources
to address the issue for their colleagues in China.
Although the team successfully secured some
orders from the US, UK, and a few other
countries, there was still a huge gap between the
demand and supply needed to reopen operations
and protect the more than 12 000 Cummins
employees in China.
The turning point came in South Africa. After
receiving urgent requests from their colleagues in
China, the Africa and Middle East Area Business
Organisation mobilised immediately. Annie Chu
and Yueqian Zhang in Johannesburg spent a
weekend searching for a supplier. On 2 February,
they successfully secured 500 000 FFP2 masks.
The first batch of 160 000 masks arrived in
Shanghai on 8 February. All the remaining masks
had arrived by 14 February. The masks played
a critical role in the resumption of business for
many Cummins’ China operations. The cross-
border teamwork is continuing as another set of
masks is readied to ship to China.
Many Cummins employee groups have also
mobilised to secure donations for individuals in
impacted regions. For example, the Columbus
Chinese Association, Cummins East Asia
Employee Resource Group, and many others
explored various opportunities to source and
donate masks and other items.
Those efforts alone resulted in 10 000 masks
successfully sent to Cummins employees and
local communities in Wuhan and Xiangyang.
“It has been a privilege for us to be in a position
where we could do something to help, and I am
very proud of the dedication and selflessness
of our Africa and Middle East employees and
the great collaboration between them and our
colleagues in China,” Thierry Pimi, Executive
Managing Director of the Africa and Middle East
Area Business Organisation, highlights.
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