Following our previous communication regarding Coronavirus, we have updated our planning in the face of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Whilst the number of confirmed cases so far in the UK remains low, England’s Chief Medical Officer has warned of the high risk of the COVID 19 outbreak becoming a full epidemic.
Keeping Our Business Running
Over the last two years, we have been investing significantly in systems and infrastructure so that our business can continue to operate under many different scenarios. Enabling our staff to work easily from home is key in the event the NHS recommend large scale self-quarantine.
- Telephony – we continue to support our customers on the phone and can take calls anywhere as we have deployed our own Cloud based phone services which operates in the cloud and can deliver calls to staff wherever they may be.
- Cloud – our customer service systems operate in the cloud and can, therefore, be accessed from anywhere by authorised personnel. We also use Office 365 for all our collaborative work and data storage and so can continue to work regardless of location.
- IT Equipment and Infrastructure – we have re-equipped the majority of our people, so they can work remotely and securely with modern devices (Mobile and tablets) and upgraded our security infrastructure to cope with the load of a large number of our people working remotely and to ensure this can be done securely.
Will I Still be Able to Buy What I Need?
We are in regular contact with our main suppliers to see if, and how the equipment we provide to our customers will be affected if there is a prolonged impact in China (particularly) or in other key manufacturing countries. At present we are being told that supply is largely unaffected. However, we believe that, if the spread widens or is sustained, shortages may well develop which will mean we are unable to supply key pieces of equipment, or prices could rise. If you have a time-critical project you might want to review if this could impact your business and its plans.
Customer Site Visits
As part of our planning, and in line with guidance from the UK Government on the prevention of the spread of viral infection, Connexions & our suppliers have introduced steps for their engineering teams whilst visiting end customer premises.
With effect from 9th March, before entering an end customer’s premises* engineers will be asking two questions, to establish the possible presence of a patient with Coronavirus:
- Has anyone in the premises been diagnosed with COVID-19, has been asked to self- isolate, or has been travelling to a coronavirus high-risk area or country in the last 14 days?
- Is anyone in the premises suffering from flu-like symptoms?
If the answer to the first question is yes, the engineer will contact a special hotline for further advice on how to proceed and to ensure the job is correctly reappointment when appropriate.
If the answer to the second question is yes, the engineer will proceed with the job, but will undertake additional hygiene actions. This includes wiping surfaces, asking the end customer to stay in a different room, to not accept drinks, and on finishing the job to not complete the sign-off with the customer.
If the answer to both questions is no, the job will proceed as normal.
Connexions are committed to maintaining all of our services and to continue to carry out appointments in customer premises, wherever possible, but we hope these simple steps will help to ensure the safety of your people and that of the wider community.
The situation is rapidly changing, and we will continue to review this process as the situation develops, in the interim ask our staff and customers to observe the current UK coronavirus guidelines:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19/guidance-for-employers-and-businesses-on-covid-19#preventing-spread-of-infection
