Ducati to gradually resume production

Ducati has announced that it is resuming production ‘gradually’ at its Borgo Panigale plant after having closed its doors since Friday, March 13 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Coming as ‘the first phase of return’, the initial resumption of production at the firm’s Bologna site will see workshop staff come back to work first. They will then be followed by engine assembly workers and then motorcycle assembly workers shortly after.

Only those who are not in a position to carry out their work from home will be allowed to return to the factory, with all employees involved in the commercial, marketing, IT, personnel management, finance, purchasing and logistic areas required to work remotely.

The company now has a requirement for the use of masks – regardless of distancing from colleagues – while production has been changed from one eight-hour shift to two seven-hour shifts to ensure that a smaller number of people are in the facility at one time.

Claudio Domenicali, Ducati CEO, said: “We are ready to go, we have worked hard over the past few weeks to minimize any risk.

“Despite this we will have to be extremely cautious and rigorous. The virus is still in circulation and we must therefore be careful to combat any possible form of transmission. This is the reason why all the people present in the factory will wear masks, we must protect the population from the presence of asymptomatic positives who, although in a very small percentage, are present today and will not be identified by the mandatory temperature test.

“The Chinese market is already booming, sales in Korea and Japan are doing well. In Germany, dealers have been open for a week and we already have a major shortage of product. I really believe that this restart can allow us to reduce at least in part the negative effects of the lockdown that we were forced to respect, unfortunately at the worst time.”