Plywood manufacturing is resumed in different plywood manufacturing clusters from 4th May, but exodus of labors from these manufacturing hubs is on the rise with each passing day. In the emerging scenario, majority of plywood manufacturing plants across the country will have to cut down their production time or even suspend it in days to come.
The scenario is fast approaching towards a stage where it will be difficult for plywood industries to smooth run their units. Despite of the fact that, in Green zone and orange zone, manufacturing units are allowed to run with some restriction from May 4, 2020 onward, the operations can not sustain for longer period with various restriction in neighboring states. It is reported that clusters of plywood manufacturing in states such as Haryana, Punjab, UP, Bihar, Kerala, Gujarat etc have reported to resume their production.
Majority of plywood producers are of view that we have to use the remaining raw materials such as timber, resin etc with their present work force staying in their premises and convert it in to finished goods to prevent the loss of raw materials from decays due to long and uncertain effects of corona. The factory owners are now preparing the list of workers who intend to return home and handing over the list to authorities for arrangement of transport. It is coming clear that labors will not stay longer in factories once the government arranges the train facilities for them to their home states. It is being heard that the lobours will not back to their work for another 2-3 months, hence if demand for material picksup, there will be a supply shortage for sure.
The plywood producers say that they have many pending orders, and the shopkeepers are asking to send materials, hence initially they are dispatching materials to them at old rates but it will not possible for them to supply new orders at old rates. Experts say that with minimum operational workforce, the overhead cost will rise immediately; hence the finished good costs will go up.
Report from different plywood markets also finds that there is limited stock of plywood at distributors and dealers godown, hence they are unable to feed plywood products for more than two weeks once the operation will start. Governments are trying to start its projects and many building projects with some stimulus package plan, hence shuttering plywood and doors demand will be more in short term followed by General Purpose Plywood.
A producer from Kerala says that If I do not use the existing labours they will go back as many of them have made available their passes. Everyday two trains are rolling with labours to different states. In Haryana and Punjab the situation is same as nearly 6.5 lakh labour in Punjab alone have registered themselves to go back.
