During this unsettling time with the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, you may be concerned about how this unprecedented government reaction (non-essential business closures, shelter-in-place orders, and the like) will affect your company and those you employ. As a small business ourselves, we share these concerns. We want you to know that we are here for you as you lead your business through these uncharted waters.

Throughout the United States and the world in general, businesses are having to consider how to effectively utilize their employees under the situation where physical contact between individuals is being restricted to a very high degree. The options that companies face is to remain open and rely on “remote” operations, or temporarily close departments that are deemed “non-essential”. For well-prepared companies, remote working need not be too much of a hindrance in the short-term. Unfortunately, for Quality and Inspection departments, this is not a realistic option due to the “hands-on” nature of the process and equipment required.

To fill the gap left by the absence of these employees, several of our customers have been reaching out to us for help on an as-needed basis. We wanted to let our customers know that we are here to help you should you find yourself in a temporary bind and in need of outsourced dimensional inspection services. We also wanted to provide businesses a few helpful tips in these uncertain times to help you maintain a stable and productive work environment.

The key in a crisis like this is to be flexible. The food industry is a fantastic example of rapidly altering behavior. While sit-in dining is going downhill, many food establishments are ramping up home delivery, take out, and drive-thru operations. Monitoring the unfolding coronavirus situation and planning for changes is the best way you can manage it. Be flexible and make sure your staff, customers, and suppliers are informed of all changes. This could last for quite a while yet.

Here are some helpful tips for businesses to navigate the rapidly changing landscape:

Monitor the Situation Closely
Things are shifting abruptly day-to-day. Nobody knows what will happen and how long COVID-19 will affect their business operations. Keep checking for updates on national legislation, local ordinances, and recommendations provided by relevant organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO) and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – they can change fast! Keep your staff informed as much as possible and provide any extra support if necessary. It’s imperative that you speak to your customers and suppliers regularly. Find out how they’re handling the situation and if there are any possible concerns on the horizon. Learn about their plans for both likely and worst-case scenarios.

Map Out Risks and Concerns
Identify what falls within your control and how you can help things along. Create a detailed worst-case scenario plan, establish who does what, and at what point this plan is triggered. Map multiple responses for different outcomes, so if one thing doesn’t work, you’ll have something to fall back on.

Inform Your Customers and Suppliers
You’ve probably already received COVID-19 emails from companies from across the spectrum; we suggest you do the same. If you haven’t already, let your customers, suppliers, contractors, etc. know what you’re doing to minimize coronavirus-related disruptions.

Create Guidelines for Working Remotely
For departments that can be moved to remote management. If you have to shift operations to remote mode quickly, provide your employees with clear guidelines on how they have to manage their workload, where they will track projects, tasks, time, and whom they can reach out in case of difficulties. Also, make sure this information is accessible so that everyone can read it.

Optimize Business Operations
It is well worth your time to step back and take an objective assessment of your company’s current operations. Ask yourself, what are the most time-consuming parts of our everyday work? Where do we lose the most efficiency? Where is the most friction in our production process? There are myriad ways that could improve efficiency to optimize your business in the face of the unfolding crisis.

Adjust Targets and Projections
This year won’t be like last year or any before it. As there are so many unknowns, you may want to revise your production, shipping, sales, budgets, and return-on-investment targets for the quarter and even the year. Do you want to reallocate spend into different departments or business areas?

Set SMART Business Goals
If you don’t know where you’re heading, don’t be surprised when you come to the wrong place. Your employees should have clear goals and KPIs to be able to meet the requirements. Clear objectives and temporary “workarounds” might help your employees to stay on track and carry on working at the best pace possible.

Diversify Your Supply Chain
Perhaps you’re already learning now is the time to have contingency suppliers. Maybe your suppliers are struggling to cope with this coronavirus environment, and they’re slowing down, increasing their prices, or even closing their doors permanently. It’s worth looking at how other suppliers are doing and diversifying your resources. Things could be okay for now but another globally disrupting force could emerge in the future with similar or even worse destabilizing effects. It’s always best to be prepared.

Ensure Product Quality Control
Many companies may have fewer members of staff working. There could be horrendous supply chain issues. If sales shoot up, it’s likely suppliers and manufacturers will be working faster to fulfill sales and production goals. This could unintentionally result in mistakes being made and corners being cut. Discuss with your customers, and suppliers on how they’re managing changes and steps they’re taking to maintain quality control.

Outsourcing Logistics and Processes
Many contractors or consultants have excellent systems in place to efficiently plug into your workflow without creating a bottleneck in your production. For example, many of our customers have already trimmed, are in the process of trimming, or are planning to trim back the workforce to the essential revenue-generating positions. Positions in Quality and Inspection are often among the first to be cut or reduced.

We’re Here to Help

We can work as an extension of your own quality department should the need arise. Q-PLUS Labs is the single most credentialed, precision dimensional measurement and contract inspection laboratory in the country. We are an independent metrology lab that, since 1987, has provided our customers with a one-stop, under-one-roof solution to all their CMM First Article Inspection, 3D Scanning, Reverse Engineering (including CAD and print creation), Model-Based Inspection, Calibration, On-Site Measurement, and other essential Dimensional Inspection and Quality related needs, and we can do the same for you.

Our state-of-the-art equipment, as well as our professional expertise, allow us to provide the most reliable inspection results to ensure you know whether your parts are made to specification. We are also a reseller of dimensional inspection equipment and machinery, small hand tools, and metrology software for inspection and reverse engineering. We are authorized distributors for FARO, 3D Systems Geomagic Software, ZEISS, and Starrett, to name a few.

Our Credentials
Q-PLUS Labs is A2LA accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2017, ISO 9001:2015 registered, AS9100:2016, and ISO 13485:2016 certified. We are ITAR registered and a long-time member of the American Society for Quality (ASQ). All measurements performed are traceable to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (N.I.S.T.).

In Conclusion
It’s such a challenging time for businesses around the world; timely response to COVID-19 cases might save lives and maintain a healthy atmosphere for your team. Stay alert, adopt new systems, build reliable communication channels, and follow recommendations provided by relevant agencies to take control of the situation. Who knows? Perhaps, this crisis will help you to establish a reliable and secure work infrastructure that will serve your company for years to come.