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This is the best way to remain resilient in a world of uncertainty. Globalisation has worked well for many and industry should not go backwards by reshoring, he said. The crisis has also been a test of leadership and, Pinatel stressed, communication is key. What would have happened if the crisis had come along 10 or 15 years ago? IT and digital communications have come a long way since then and have enabled organisations to move rapidly to remote working – and not just for office staff. The climate crisis is also still there; during the pandemic, carbon emissions have fallen but not far enough to meet the targets set by the UN. Emissions reduction has to be a priority, both internally and within the industry’s customers. Some solutions were offered during the panel discussion following the presentations, with Jim Fitterling expressing the strong view that decarbonisation will not happen without the contribution of nuclear power. THE STRESS TEST Presentations during the second day of the EPCA Annual Meeting were, as ever, devoted to supply chain and logistics issues. Introducing the day, Caroline Ciuciu noted that there were around 1,000 delegates registered for the first day, showing, she said, that “our network is vibrant and engaged”. Helmstaedt summarised the first day’s discussions, with the overriding message that Covid-19 has intensified the challenges facing the petrochemical industry but that leadership has stepped up to meet those challenges. It is clear that collaboration is increasing – and will stay that way – she said, and that the petrochemical industry has a pivotal role to play in re-emergence from the pandemic. Dirk Verstraeten, director of global logistics procurement at Covestro Deutschland and chair of EPCA’s Supply Chain Programme Committee (SCPC), introduced the session,
and the circular economy within the logistics sector, which is aware that it will have a big role to play. It is fortunate, therefore, that supply chains are more agile and innovative than ever before, he said. With the aim of opening up discussion, Peter Hinssen, author, speaker and co-founder of nexxworks, described 2020 as “the year the earth stood still” and said it has been “a great stress test”, both at work and at home. But he challenged the idea of the ‘new normal’, suggesting that we now find ourselves in a ‘never normal’ world. It is just as well that industry has invested heavily in IT in recent years; digital used to be the cherry on the cake but now it’s the cake. But in a ‘never normal’ world, the process of digitisation will never be over. There have been fast changes in IT, climate and global politics, with each seismic shock triggering opportunities. The Covid-19 crisis
In a world of constant flux, businesses need a vaccine or, as Hinssen had it, a ‘VACINE’. He preached Velocity (if everything is under control, you’re not going fast enough), Agility (learn to read the changes), Creativity (tap into the potential of your employees), Innovation (in products, services, technology and so on), Networking (“connectivity is everything”) and Experimentation (don’t be afraid of risk, lower the cost of failure). For the petrochemical industry in particular, Hinssen urged it to leverage the power of its networks. “Think about the day after tomorrow,” Hinssen concluded. “Sense what’s going on, try new stuff, scale up and run with it. Move the dial up to 11!”
noting that there is action on sustainability
has also accelerated changes in consumer and business behaviour, with a huge impact on finances. Hinssen’s message was that we had all better get used to such volatility as it will be norm going forward. “The comfort zone of the ‘old normal’ may be gone forever,” he cautioned.
a major focus on Asia. Integra introduced new protocols in February and, she said, “rolled with the punches”, with relatively few outages. She said she found that the company’s systems were only as good as the personnel using them. “It was humans, working from home, that kept stuff moving,” she said. “It’s all still about people.” »
THE PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRY IS ALREADY DOING A LOT TO REDUCE ITS ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
HCB MONTHLY | NOVEMBER 2020
THE PEOPLE PEOPLE Coming back to earth, Gina Fyffe, CEO of Integra Petrochemicals, said her company saw the pandemic coming, operating as it does with
