Bentley has resumed production at the company's headquarters in Crewe, England, with over 1,700 colleagues following the 250 comprehensive and wide-ranging hygiene and social distancing guidelines implemented to enable a safe return.
This represents the next stage in Bentley's 'Come Back Stronger' programme, a phased production ramp up following the biggest changes to daily working life in the company's 100-year history.
On each line, production will be running at approximately 50% for a number of weeks as the takt time of each car - the average start time from one manufacturing stage to the next - has doubled.
In addition, each production cell now spreads over two stages rather than one, ensuring adequate distance between colleagues. All colleagues, during the shutdown, or returning later, have been keep fully updated with the changes through a home-issued guide, video tutorial and a newly created Employee News app designed to ease any uncertainty that this challenging period prompts
Facemasks are now compulsory in all factory and office areas, while Bentley will maintain a work from home policy for those who are able to. The robust measures will ensure Bentley staff stay as safe as possible at all times.
In relevant office areas and catering facilities where distancing is more challenging, plastic partitions - designed and manufactured by Bentley workers - now offer segregation between colleagues in addition to control measures limiting capacity, staggered times and distanced seating.
