According to The Ply reporter survey and analysis carried out in different manufacturing clusters, during May 4th to last day of May, Plywood manufacturing units have barely crossed 20% of their production capacity as a cumulative count for the month average. There have been one shift operations in majority of the plants with hardly one third of the workers present in the plants. The manufacturing units have been able to finish their material in process inside their premises during May with the one shift plant run. It was also observed that only half of the plywood manufacturing units could operate after 20th may. Many of the plants have reportedly shut down production due to mass departure of plants workers to their natives.
In organized sector, leading plywood manufacturing companies are still operating at barely half of the efficiency of their total monthly output. The brands with more than two plants in India have yet to start manufacturing in all the manufacturing facilities despite of presence of workforce. In a stark contrast, the organized and better managed manufacturing companies have been able to convince their workers to stay and help to ramp up the manufacturing whereas unorganized industries have very few workers left to run all the plant processes.
Due to exodus of migrant laborers from Haryana, Punjab, Kerala, Gujarat etc, Month of May recorded barely 22-25% of the total of pre-Covid numbers. In Yamuna Nagar alone more than 50 percent of plants are shut, and the running plants are operating at barely one shift with many sections for running partly. The manufacturing units located in UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Bengal etc, observed comparatively better utilization with 25-35%, due to availability of local workforce. On an average, barely 24-25 percent manufacturing is recorded for month of May, which may further drop, if remaining workers leave for their native places, express manufacturers from different clusters.
The availability of raw materials is equally impacted due to absence of migrant labourers and skilled workforce. The demand for plywood, in month of June are expected to be on similar levels that will be another factor to determine capacity uses at manufacturing plants. It is anticipated that a little up stick in demand and further exodus of workforce will nullify the gain in June at manufacturing.