Foxconn restarts iPhone production, puts many safeguards in place

China continues to show signs of recovery from the Coronavirus as Foxconn restarts iPhone production in its China factory. Reopening the Zhengzhou plant where the highest number of iPhones are produced, the Taiwanese company is going to great lengths to ensure there is no second wave of the Coronavirus outbreak.

According to multiple reports, Foxconn and other manufacturers are taking great measures to ensure there is no second wave of the Coronavirus outbreak. The company is breaking its employees into groups of 20, and they must eat, sleep, work and travel together. The cafeteria now has barriers between tables in order to prevent employees from seeing or talking to each other. The company has also put QR code on all the seats, and employees are required to scan the QR code so that the company can track who sat where. Additionally, the company says that workers’ temperatures are being recorded every day and the company is also using an infrared video camera to monitor the body temperature of employees across the facility. Foxconn has also said that they are producing 2 million face masks daily for use by its 1 million-strong work-force.

All of the above measures have Foxconn feeling confident about ramping up production, and consequently meeting the deadline for the iPhone 12 launch in September. There had been growing concerns that due to the Coronavirus ravaging through China, Apple may have to delay the launch of the iPhone 12. Turns out, that may not be the case after all. While bigger factories have started coming back online in China, the smaller outfits in the supply chain are yet to catch up.

India’s manufacturing facilities all remain shut as the government-mandated lockdown of the country continues. The lockdown is currently mandated until the 14^th of April, but the government is expected to asses the situation and decide on whether to extend the lockdown or lift it.