The corona virus has caused a lot of changes in the world economy. Some areas have been hit harder and others not so severely, some almost like with silk gloves. Even though the COVID-19 pandemic is globally not yet over, we can already state from UPCAST’s part that we have survived well through this time. Our advantage has been our capability to quickly adapt to the new situation, and we have even been able to turn some of the challenges into opportunities.

It is said that a chain is as weak as its weakest link. We are lucky to have good, long term and mainly local suppliers and we have been able to maintain our supplier chain in these exceptional circumstances. We have been lucky to receive raw materials and components and to deliver the goods to our customers according to the agreed schedules. The customer service has really become very appreciated: we have been able to serve our customers during the pandemic and that has also been our strength in the business.

There was, however, something that changed. We used to travel a lot more and have face to face time with our customers. Now, since that has become impossible, we have had to find new ways and platforms for the different ways to communicate. Many tasks have been handled by working remotely from home. Digitalization had already kicked off strongly before the pandemic and now, during this exceptional time, it required an additional boost. Video negotiations will never replace meetings in person, but they have now become natural and usable tools alongside those. Regarding the UPCAST® lines, we have already for a long time had the possibility to have a remote connection with the equipment, and this capability has now proven itself to be of utmost importance. With the remote-control system and the video connection, we have been able to carry out the commissioning of new equipment at the customer´s site. 

When writing this we can already position ourselves on the edge of some new growth, even though we cannot be certain how the pandemic will eventually develop. The world, however, will not stop, but will continue to move forward  –  although there will be many changes made. We will have very busy times ahead of us. This is a positive challenge, which we gladly accept.

I was transferred to the position of sales director in the autumn 2020 when my colleague began his well-deserved retirement. We utilized the quieter time in the project business, it was a good moment to reorganize and to get some new strength into the team. Now we are ready for the forthcoming upturn and challenges more efficiently and agilely than before, and we look forward to serving our customers in many diverse ways. 

Hope to see you soon – hopefully also face to face!