LEDiL CEO’s Q&A update on Covid-19 impact

 

What is the current situation in LEDiL?

Everyone in the LEDiL team has been working hard on plans and actions managing this currently unstable situation. We have seen various rapid changes related to the Covid-19 pandemic itself, different actions by governments, municipalities and various authorities as well as changes in the overall global business environment. LEDiL’s number one priority has been health and safety of our employees and related stakeholders with very strong focus on our business continuity and customer service. We have done various initiatives to prevent the spread of Covid-19 within LEDiL. So far, we have not had any cases of confirmed infection amongst our employee base. Currently, all our operations are running, naturally much in the remote working mode, and production around the world is fully operational.

 

What measures has LEDiL taken in order to reduce the risk for spread of the Covid-19 virus?

We have followed recommendations from health authorities and taken measures to ensure appropriate hygiene. Traveling has been put on hold throughout the LEDiL Group and replaced with frequent communication over various types of video conferencing. We have increased our capabilities to work outside of the company’s premises by providing additional VPN connections. Hence, majority of our employees work fully or partly from home or other remote location. We have a clear focus on keeping recommended social distance between people.

 

How has the situation affected our daily operations and LEDiL company?

The Covid-19 itself has already had remarkable consequences for our societies and many businesses. With our #inthistogether spirit and mutual efforts throughout the entire LEDiL family, despite of difficult and challenging times, we have managed to ensure continuity of operations globally. As many companies, also LEDiL is now highly dependent on customer demand development and logistics operations continuity. We are closely monitoring possible signs of slowing demand as it is increasingly evident that many countries, and also companies around the world, are entering into a temporary close-down mode, which may have an effect on our deliveries. We must continue to monitor the situation on daily basis and fully prepare ourselves with a plan to mitigate the impact caused by possible temporary outstanding decrease on demand and/or logistics operations. So, should it happen, we are ready to promptly take necessary safeguarding actions, including cost saving, to ensure liquidity of LEDiL. We are also expecting to see similar actions from our industry colleagues as they may also suffer from similar challenges.

 

What is our focus now and in the weeks/months to come?

The most demanding issue of this Covid-19 situation is its unpredictability, which naturally adds much unnecessary concern and uncertainty. It is very difficult to predict how the Covid-19 pandemic will develop, what further measures will be taken by governments or authorities, and how this will affect our customer demand and LEDiL. As stated earlier, the health and safety of our employees and related stakeholders is our first priority, followed by the business continuity and customer service. We are in regular and close dialogue with our direct customers and distributors in order to understand the demand development.

While we are temporarily affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, and subsequent extraordinary economic turmoil, following our new strategic initiatives we want further prepare ourselves with a plan to ensure that we will enhance our efficiency and competitiveness going forward. For that purpose, we shall strengthen our focus, optimize our organization and business model.

I have no doubt we shall prevail, but nobody says it will be easy. The management at LEDiL is planning and preparing for several scenarios, and we are all hoping for the best, but also preparing for the worst. I encourage everyone to keep up the good momentum under the current circumstances. LEDiL aims to sail through this extraordinary challenging period and remain a strong and leading player in the optics business, for years to come.

I wish to thank all LEDiL team members and our valued customers, partners and suppliers under these difficult times.

 

Stay well and healthy,

Petteri Saarinen
CEO