Three months have now passed since February 21, 2020, the day of the announcement of the first case of positivity to the Coronavirus, found in Codogno in the province of Lodi. In the previous weeks there were fragmentary reports of an epidemic that was spreading in China, but we all thought it was something distant that would not concern us, and if it touched us, we would have managed and overcome it like any winter flu. However, the number of victims that was feeding that distant situation could not be considered normal, let alone a simple detail for people who are fond of statistics.

In those days at the end of February Ancilla Bezzi and the undersigned were engaged in the exhibition “Fornitore offresi 2020” in Erba in the province of Como.  When the news of the first case of Codogno arrived, a noise was immediately perceived between the pavilions. The interest for the fair quickly waned, leaving a widespread concern and a desire to break ranks to go home, with the instinct to protect oneself and understand what would happen the next day.

A phone call to Dr. Luigi Residori, a dearest friend and doctor in force at the Borgo Trento Hospital in Verona, immediately alerted us to the importance of this news: foreshadowing the dramatic scenario that three weeks later we would really experience, he urged us to take the situation very seriously.

We must thank him for his advice if, during the same weekend, the company’s management organized and activated immediate security measures, regardless of the lack of official government directives, bodies and health structures that at the first juncture appeared to be waiting and uncoordinated in communications through the media.

The suspension of all classroom training activities, the staggering of staff at different working hours, the suspension of consultants’ and representatives’ visits, the strict regulation of access and the disclosure of the hygiene rules to be adopted, all this, applied since Monday 24 February, allowed Scilla Meccanica’s work to be carried out regularly in safety. Until the production activities closed on 23 March 2020, stated by the Prime Ministerial Decree of 22 March 2020, no positive cases of Corona Virus were found in the company.

From then on, office activities were regularly carried out in smart working, while the prospect of a three-week production shutdown was revised with an advanced notwithstanding re opening on April 12, 2020. Starting up again, notified in advance to the Prefecture of Brescia, justified by the request of about sixty customers that supply components necessary to support specific chain activities, classified as “necessary” and authorized by the government decree.

In the meantime, the company has activated, although minimally, the ordinary redundancy fund (CIGO) notwithstanding for Covid-19.

Despite the production downtime, the suspension of supplier-customer relations and the sharp break in the flow of orders-deliveries-payments have led to consequences whose negative impact will tend to be projected over the mid-long term, Scilla Meccanica has not hesitate to pay workers redundancy payments in advance, as required by the agreements between the government and the social partners.

The Prime Ministerial Decree of 26 April 2020 led to a regular restarting of the productive sectors.

Scilla Meccanica’s work activities are currently carried out in compliance with anti-contagion safety protocols.

The management, in collaboration with RSPP, RLS and legal advisors on the subject, has internally and externally disclosed the “Covid-19 Emergency Company Protocol” as well as a file of procedures to be daily adopted in the company to prevent contagion. The measures taken are summarized in the following principles:

• spacing;
• hand sanitization;
• personal protective equipment;
• anti-droplet barriers;
• temperature measurement at the entrance;
• space and route limitation;
• professional cleaning and sanitizing of rooms, at regular intervals;
• admission of maintenance workers, consultants and representatives on a indispensability criteria;
• staff shifting;
• enable home smart working;
• use of social security cushions;
• stop of collective training activities.

The company management has appointed an emergency committee to regularly update the safety protocol and monitor its implementation in cooperation with department supervisors.

The staff is punctually instructed and trained by notifications, posted on the bulletin board and sent to the respective e-mail address.