The production of vehicles and vehicle parts at ŠKODA AUTO’s Czech plants has been suspended since 18 March 2020. In many countries, the car market is also severely restricted by measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus – but most garages remain open to customers. The ŠKODA Parts Center will continue to supply ŠKODA partners’ service locations with the full range of ŠKODA genuine parts even during the pandemic so that they can provide optimal support for their customers. The parts centre supplies service locations in more than 94 markets worldwide. In the Czech Republic, 99% of the 227 service locations remain open, and in neighbouring Slovakia, 87% of the 74 operations are still available to customers. Across the car manufacturer’s 20 most important markets, around 77% of all authorised workshops are currently in operation.
To keep the many millions of ŠKODA vehicles worldwide on the road, the ŠKODA Parts Center is currently operating three shifts again. At the peak of the coronavirus pandemic in the Czech Republic, this was limited to two shifts to ensure no-contact logistics; at times only 150 of the regular 600 employees were on site. Protecting staff and suppliers from COVID-19 infection remains a top priority. For this reason, ŠKODA, with the backing of the KOVO trade union, has introduced the best possible safety measures for the site and established numerous additional hygiene and protection rules: Before starting work, the employees of the ŠKODA Parts Center are subject to random body temperature measurements. ŠKODA AUTO is providing the employees with either respirators or face shields, depending on the work area. Disinfectants are available at every workstation, and clearly visible signs inform the staff of the correct hygiene procedures.
Covering a total area of 180,000 square metres, the ŠKODA Parts Center in Mladá Boleslav is the largest parts warehouse in the Czech Republic. As one of only three European master depots of the Volkswagen Group, it plays a key role in supplying genuine parts to the entire Group. Around 90 trucks with genuine parts leave the ŠKODA Parts Center every day – before the coronavirus restrictions, the number was approximately 190. As a rule, the ŠKODA Parts Center sends around 28,000 shipments of genuine parts and accessories to more than 100 countries around the world every day.
