Safely re-opening the food sector after lockdown

7 Key Areas to Consider in Post-Coronavirus Food Manufacturing

As Covid-19 has taken its course, we have seen lifestyles adapted in ways that will continue even after lockdown orders are eased. This is particularly relevant to social distancing; for many, this has become a way of life and is rapidly transitioning from a series of conscious decisions, to an automatic and subconscious thought-process.

In recent days, it has become clear that we will have to maintain a significant level of social distancing until we have a vaccine available. With a mass-produced vaccine potentially being months away, social distancing is here to stay – for the medium-term at least.

This blog considers some of the changes and new processes that will likely be required to most effectively prepare for reopening, or at least bringing all staff back, after lockdown. Those who prepare best are sure to be safely back up to speed the fastest.

Personal Space

Even when lockdown is lifted, staff will require more personal space to feel comfortable and socially distance effectively – and will expect you to provide it for them.

Think about all areas of your facility where more than one person will be present at a time including reception areas, canteens, offices, smoking shelters and, of course, production lines.

One easy way to professionally create personal space is using movable screens such as SegriScreen Shield or by using Countertop screens. These are particularly useful when working with a fixed room layout or limited space, and can easily be cleaned down for maximum hygiene.
Staff Physical Wellbeing

Although this may seem obvious, with many food factories starting to increase production volumes and bring staff back into offices, this additional volume of staff will put existing procedures under stress. It is also made more challenging when agency staff and rotating shifts are involved, as different persons are always coming and going.

Consider setting up a specific factory entrance procedure involving a documented health check each time staff enter your facility. This should ideally be conducted in a dedicated area where it can be carried out consistently and safely – again, screens can help with this. Depending on shift lengths, checks may also need to be conducted every few hours rather than just at the start of the shift.

Other areas to consider include air quality and providing dedicated locations for correct PPE items, such as PPE stations; these help to ensure organisational efficiency and safe working conditions for all staff.
Staff Mental Health

Along with the obvious attention given to physical wellbeing as a result of Coronavirus, such a widespread crisis has also caused a significant increase in anxiety and mental health issues.

To ensure ongoing employee engagement and productivity, consider implementing or bolstering mental health programmes for staff at your site. This can include regular internal communications, ensuring consistent working patterns, and making all staff aware that there is a helpline for support if required.

Consider how your factory lighting could be improved to enhance working environments, along with signage including motivational quotations, company values or other encouraging internal communications.
Go Touchless

Right from the car park through to production, your staff will be looking to keep their hands to themselves, and anything that makes this difficult will be creating a risk.

Make a plan to map out the whole journey that your staff will have to take, and ensure that you are facilitating a contact-free experience.

Whether it’s using a common pen to sign in or turning a tap on manually, note down any points where staff have to use their hands and consider how you can turn this from a ‘high risk’ into a ‘low risk’ or a ‘no risk’.
Documented Cleaning Routines

Whilst the hygiene function is normally a given in any food factory environment, including daily washdowns and cleaning routines, Covid-19 has forced focus onto areas that have never been in the spotlight before.

All of the contact points identified in your ‘going touchless’ journey mapping must be assigned to specific persons or teams who are responsible for them, along with a documented procedure to ensure they are sanitised regularly. With high numbers of staff returning to work and office staff returning to their work desks, this task list will grow longer and you may need to bolster resources available for this.

To increase overall team awareness and accountability, consider implementing dry-wipe boards which highlight high-risk contact points and show when it was last sanitised. This will bring peace of mind to staff whilst demonstrating to site visitors, customers and auditors that you have an effective system in place.
A picture tells a thousand words

As many factories consider bringing staff back to work for the first time, remember that making a habit takes at least 21 reminders! It's well-proven visual communication is far faster and more effective than reading written words.

Visual reminders in the form of signage, graphical instructions, floor markings or sanitisation stations are therefore highly effective options, ensuring that staff are reminded to comply with site processes.

Klipspringer’s NPD experts have created a range of highly visual measures that can be implemented specifically to help sites get back to running at full capacity – view the solutions here.
Think Long-Term

Now that the the initial panic phase of the Coronavirus pandemic has passed, the most proactive companies have already been putting long-term plans in place.

If you haven’t already, think about setting up a dedicated Covid-19 hub with a large printed or dry-wipe floor plan of your site, identifying current measures, long-term plans and ongoing high-risk spots.

With social distancing and increased hygiene control needed for many months to come, measures such as signage and screens must be hard-wearing and robust enough to last, and also remain compliant. On-site audits may have been far fewer over recent months, but they will be back in full force soon, so it pays to compliance-check everything in advance!