BSH Hišni Aparati Restarts Production with Safety, Protective Equipment

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BSH Hišni Aparati, which was one of the first large manufacturers in Slovenia to halt production over the coronavirus epidemic, is also among the first to relaunch it. The company, the largest producer of small household appliances in Europe, operated at 15% of capacity on Monday and hopes to be at 50% next week.

"We mostly had to close because public transport was suspended, as 75% of our workers used the bus to come to work...The second reason was the absence of protective equipment and the fact that an outbreak in our factory would have meant an excessive peril for the Upper Savinja Valey. There are 1,500 of us here while the valley has 16,000 inhabitants," BSH director Boštjan Gorjup explained for the business daily Finance.

After closing shop on 15 March, BSH, which is a part of the international concern BSH Home Appliances Group, told around 150 workers to return to work on Monday. While planning to start working at 50% capacity next week, Gorjup, who is also the chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS), explained this still depended on suppliers.