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Reykja-where?
- By Eric Lundin
- April 22, 2010
And, on April 15, the island’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano taught many travelers a thing or two about contingency planning and many business managers a lesson in disaster preparedness. Granted, the airlines have the most to lose, but the lessons are obvious for businesses of all sorts.
If you’re reading this, you probably manufacture things. Are you ready for an emergency, large or small? When was the last time you shopped around for alternate sources of raw materials, components, and supplies, in case one of your vendors becomes crippled by a natural disaster or a strike? Do you have competitive bids on shipping in case your shipping company has a strike or goes out of business? How about internal crises? Do you cross-train your employees so that an unplanned absence doesn’t disrupt your production schedule? For that matter, when was the last time you conducted a fire drill? If your company provides services and your staff members travel a lot, do they have access to a computer, telephone, and cash reserves? How much latitude do they have in making alternate travel arrangements? Do they know whether you would want them to sit tight or hurry home?
We can wait a couple of weeks and go back to business as usual, but judging by recent seismic activity—especially the earthquakes in Haiti (Jan. 12), Chile (Feb. 27), China (April 13), and Afghanistan (April 18), and of course the volcanic eruption in Iceland (started April 15)—we’d be better off to plan for a few types of emergencies.
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The Fabricator is North America's leading magazine for the metal forming and fabricating industry. The magazine delivers the news, technical articles, and case histories that enable fabricators to do their jobs more efficiently. The Fabricator has served the industry since 1970.
start your free subscriptionAbout the Author
Eric Lundin
2135 Point Blvd
Elgin, IL 60123
815-227-8262
Eric Lundin worked on The Tube & Pipe Journal from 2000 to 2022.
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