1. Are we able to produce balloons and maintain current lead times with work from home practices?
Poba Medical is taking great precautions with personal hygiene and facility cleaning practices. We produce all of our parts in a Class 100,000 cleanroom environment where we implement rigorous gowning, face protection, washing, shoe and hair protection practices. We are presently operating with a reduced assembly crew. Our BFM production equipment resides on benches six(6) feet apart allowing for adequate social distancing in our ISO-7 cleanroom.
2. Do we require engineering, office, or management staff to work from home?
As a small group residing in a spacious 7500 square foot office space with individual closed door offices we are each positioned a great distance from our neighbor due to our excessively large facility. As key employees personal situations arise we are making the most of the WFH arrangements.
3. Does Poba Medical foresee any upcoming staff reductions from the COVID-19 situation?
No. We are presently running at full capacity to keep pace with existing production and R&D projects and will be launching an intensive hiring push this summer across all business disciplines. We are focused on maintaining a level of normalcy during these uncertain times while focusing on getting to the other side in one piece; mentally, physically, emotionally, and financially. It Will Come.
4. Are four week balloon development lead times still realistic for “new” balloon projects for receipt of first articles?
While we cannot predict the breadth or extend of the COVID-19 impact on our supply chain or internal workforce we have extensive coverage across disciplines and do not expect to face major delays. Our existing supply chain remains very hungry for business and proud of the rapid turnaround of extrusion, design, or tooling.
5. When do we envision business going back to normal?
Never. We have all been impacted in some way by the unfortunate events of COVID-19, some more than others. The return to the “new” normal will depend on the timeline that our government officials place on their restrictions put in place this March 2020 to control the spread of the virus. We hope that limitations are lifted and a targeted timeline is created in order to give everyone clarity and confidence on what to expect moving forward. As for Poba Medical, we are operating at normal capacity to ensure company obligations continue to be met.
