Coronavirus: Italian design brands ask to restart production

In order to restart the production as soon as possible and safeguard Made in Italy during the Coronavirus emergency, the furnishing and design field asked to anticipate the reopening of factories on April 14, scheduled for May 3 by the last ministerial decree – and by now not allowed by government yet. The request comes through a “design manifesto” produced by B&B Italia, Bisazza, Boffi, Cappellini, Cassina, Flexform, Giorgetti, Molteni Group and Poltrona Frau after a digital working table. The group explains why the restart of production is important, addressing issues such as health, the need for work and the return to normality. The restart, as the companies of Legno-Arredo supply-chain guarantee, would be gradual and controlled thanks to anti-contamination safety measures arranged for workers, and at the same time would assure a system of 20 thousand active companies and 130 thousand workers to not get stuck.
The document includes the request for the reactivation of logistics and the reopening of sales points, warehouses and construction sites: the restoration, therefore, of the entire supply chain. The risk of a prolonged closure would lead to a loss of 20-30% of industrial assets, a high number of people unemployed and a defeat in the international competition – in particular if we look at Germany and Scandinavia that instead continue to produce.

Opening picture: Konstantin Grcic, Soft Props for Cassina, 2017