Lockdown: 65 pc capacity utilisation, focus to optimise limited manpower: Britannia

FMCG major Britannia Industries on Thursday said it is now utilising 65 per cent of its installed capacity and is "better poised" to tackle challenges in the extended lockdown period.

In a bid to scale up production quickly, the leading food company said it is focussing on stock availability rather than consumer demand with staple stock keeping units (SKUs) being preferred rather than those SKUs which demand labour intensity in order to optimise limited available manpower.

"While the business dynamics has changed in the last few weeks, we are now better poised to tackle the situation. With close to 65 per cent manufacturing capacity utilisation till now, we have stepped up efforts to address the challenge of inadequate labour in our factories," Britannia Industries Managing Director Varun Berry told PTI.

 

He was responding to a query on the company's preparedness for the extended lockdown.

Elaborating on the company's strategy, he said, "to optimise on the limited labour permissions obtained, we are focusing on staple SKUs rather than SKUs which demand labour intensity.

Stating that the challenge is to quickly scale up production, Berry said, "the current model is largely based on stock availability rather than on consumer demand."

He said Britannia is also working closely with several state governments such as Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal "to smoothen our operations there".

While carrying out the operations, Berry asserted that the company is ensuring that its employees are fully protected and are following all safety protocols, including social distancing.

"The wellbeing of our employees is at the centre of all our actions, and every step is being taken to ensure 100 per cent compliance to safety, hygiene and social distancing protocols, he said.

Britannia, which had a revenue of Rs 10,482.45 crore in FY 2018-19, operates 15 manufacturing units in India, which are widely spread in states including Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Uttranchal, Bihar, Odisha and Maharashtra.

The government on Wednesday issued new guidelines for the second phase of lockdown and allowed functioning of industrial units located in rural areas from April 20, although all kinds of public transport continue to be suspended and opening of public places are prohibited till May 3.

India is presently going through an unprecedented complete lockdown from March 25, to prevent the spread of coronavirus pandemic.