ABB reinstates operations at flood-struck Novelis, securing global automotive supply chains
EDITOR’ S CHOICE RESILIENCE IN ACTION
ABB
ABB reinstates operations at flood-struck Novelis, securing global automotive supply chains
When catastrophic flooding struck the aluminum manufacturing facilities operated by Novelis in Sierre, Switzerland, the company faced a potential crisis that could have disrupted global automotive supply chains serving major automotive manufacturers. Working with ABB’ s emergency response teams, Novelis restored critical operations within 60 days. Two years on, the restoration continues to serve as a model for industrial resilience and rapid infrastructure recovery.
National disaster hits critical suppliers
Torrential storms and melting snow hit the Sierre district of western Switzerland – known as the“ city of the sun” – in the early hours of a June morning. Events took a devastating turn for the industry located in Sierre. Novelis’ s plant was flooded overnight.
Novelis in Sierre is renowned for its fully integrated production process and plays a crucial role in supplying aluminum components to the automotive industry. The 24 / 7 Novelis plant processes over 200,000 tons of aluminum annually and for over four decades has produced high-quality aluminum sheets, collaborating closely with worldclass automotive manufacturers to innovate and enhance vehicle design.
With critical infrastructure compromised and supply to automotive customers disrupted, immediate action was essential.
The power of a seamlessly coordinated emergency response
Angeles Fernandez, Local Division Manager for Electrification Service in ABB Switzerland, immediately coordinated with AluInfra Services SA, which manages electrical infrastructure at the Sierre industrial site.
After flood waters receded and emergency services declared sites safe to enter, ABB teams assessed the extensive damage to critical electrical infrastructure and production equipment across the facility.
The scale of the challenge was immediately clear – with key systems compromised, restoring operations would require coordinated expertise across multiple specialties.
Serge Gaudin, Plant Manager at Novelis, recalls,“ Our entire plant had been submerged for weeks, and mud and water had compromised the critical systems which power our operations. Minimizing downtime and restoring production as rapidly as possible was vital to maintain our standing as a trusted partner to our customers.”
To coordinate the recovery effort, ABB brought together expertise across engineering, sales, procurement and export control, deploying specialist engineers with deep knowledge of the compromised systems to manage the installation and commissioning of replacement equipment.
ABB worked shoulder-to-shoulder with Novelis teams to optimize their existing electrical infrastructure and get operations running at peak performance.
Across borders and around the clock
ABB mobilized specialist engineers from across Europe who worked under challenging conditions and demanding timelines. After successfully fast-tracking replacement parts ahead of
6 PECM Issue 81