Coronavirus protection – New workspace partitions launched

In response to the Coronavirus Pandemic – and government guidelines on social distancing – GWP Correx® have branched out into manufacturing a new product; temporary partitions to help protect staff at critical businesses.

With a number of existing customers contacting GWP for assistance with similar products, the design team at GWP set to work on creating a modular, bespoke manufactured version that can be adapted to most applications and environments.

Whilst the temporary partitions have been designed to help with segregation of staff at businesses deemed critical at this time – such as those manufacturing pharmaceutical, medical, food and specialist equipment – it can equally be used by ecommerce businesses seeing increased demand during the current lock down.

As a manufacturing business deemed as critical by Government (due the crucial role of packaging within a number of supply chains), GWP faced the challenge of staying operational whilst maintaining the highest levels of safety for staff.

Whilst this meant many office staff could begin working from home, there are many roles that need to be performed on site that traditionally would have seen employees in close contact.

As such, the Correx® partitions were initially developed as a way of screening staff in these areas.

The screens not only ensured that the minimum 2m distancing guidelines could be easily followed, but the screens also provided a barrier for extra protection too.

Plus, being lightweight making them easy to manoeuvre and rearrange as required) they were also relatively quick to manufacture and assemble.

However, it soon became apparent that there were numerous other businesses where these Workplace Partitions could have a significant benefit.

Many critical industries such as pharmaceutical, medical and food need to stay operational during the lockdown. Plus, increased ecommerce activity is helping people to comply with the restrictions on unnecessary travel. But these businesses still have a duty of care to their staff.

Ian Cook, Managing Director at GWP Correx® said;

An increasing number of companies we have worked with previously were asking us if we could help in creating screens from Correx® plastic, in light of current guidelines on staff safety. As these screens can potentially add an additional layer of protection for employees, the logical progression was to create a design that could be quickly and easily adapted to almost any environment.

He continues;

As a result, we have been manufacturing these partitions to customers specific requirements and configurations, tailoring them to specific workstations, packing bays, assembly lines and even desks.

Besides the additional safety and compatibility that the bespoke manufactured screens can offer, there are a number of other benefits provided by the Correx® material (a form of corrugated plastic) itself.

This includes surfaces which are easy to clean with all standard cleaning products, being lightweight for easy rearranging of the partitions as required, and even a choice of colours.

And thanks to a large stock holding of material, they are available on short lead times as well.

They can even be specified in specific colours in order to match corporate colours, segment work zones, or match existing equipment.

All of this makes them ideal for use in warehouses, assembly lines, packing bays and other manufacturing environments.

The success of the workspace partitions however soon revealed another gap in businesses protection for staff – the use of canteens and office desks (where staff were unable to work from home).

As such – and due to high demand – versions tailored specifically to office desks and canteen areas were created.

These allowed for staff segregation and safety across all job roles and functions, whilst also allowing for important facilities (e.g. canteens) to remain available for employees.

You can watch a short video (below) which illustrates how these partitions are manufactured, assembled and how they can be integrated into your workspace.

The GWP Group – of which GWP Correx® is one of five divisions – remains fully operational during the Coronavirus outbreak. Supporting a number of large food delivery companies, as well as many businesses supplying products directly into the NHS, GWP have taken a number of steps to ensure continuity of supply.

Ian Heskins, Business Development Director at GWP Group, said;

As a business, we wanted to make sure we could continue helping our customers that are either supplying crucial goods and services during this time, and those – such as ecommerce businesses – who are seeing a spike in demand due to the current situation.

Whilst the primary focus has been on the safety of our staff, we have a number of manufacturing partners around the UK that can assist with production if required. Our material supply chain is also robust thanks to our association with the Corrboard corrugator plant.

These measures mean we are in a position whereby we can support not only our existing customer base, but extend this to other businesses that may be struggling to source their packaging. We are offering help with manufacturing capacity for other packaging businesses too.

For further information on the Temporary Workspace partitions you can source for your business, please click here. Alternatively, for other information on how GWP can assist your business during the current situation, please click here.