Coronavirus disrupts supply chain
The worldwide coronavirus outbreak is having an impact on UK marine businesses, according to British Marine.
The trade body’s CEO, Lesley Robinson, said firms were seeing a disruption in the supply chain.
“We will of course be keeping a close eye on the market and will be here to offer relevant and rapid support and guidance to our members if required. This could easily include connecting them with alternative UK suppliers in our membership to ensure business as usual continues,” she said.
The first case of the virus was reported in Wuhan in China on New Year’s Eve 2019 and has since spread to parts of Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas.
Ian Thomson, who runs Nestaway Boats and deals in inflatable boats and electric outboards, said initial problems with the supply of Epropulsion outboards and some brands of inflatable boats, which are both made in China, had now been solved as the factories had reopened.
“The bigger problem is getting the goods out of China due to the knock-on effect to shipping,” he explained.
He now has to arrange for a dozen inflatable boats to be flown to the UK in order to meet customer orders on time, which will cost the firm additional money. “Others in the marine industry will be more affected, especially those who rely on goods from factories in the Wuhan area,” added Thomson.