Applications to the mobility centre of the Sector Institute for Transport and Logistics (STL) are trickling in. Some 200 companies with overcapacity have registered with the centre in recent days, hoping to lend drivers or equipment to companies that are extra busy at this time. The first collaborations are now a reality.
This is what STL director Willem de Vries tells us when asked. Since the corinacris, Transport en Logistiek Nederland, VVT, evofenedex, STL and trade unions have been working together to help companies in the sector with the continuity of their operations. While some companies are virtually idle due to the Covid-19 outbreak, others have to pull out all the stops to supply customers with products. Through the STL's mobility centre, those companies are linked together free of charge.
The centre is not a new initiative. It was set up at the time of the economic crisis to bring business supply and demand together, explains the STL director. "Of course, it is now convenient that we have kept this going all these years."
First collaborations
According to De Vries, it is mainly entrepreneurs with overcapacity who know how to find the mobility centre, for example companies working for ornamental plant cultivation or the catering industry. Meanwhile, companies with undercapacity are also knocking on the door. "We now have four applications from companies that have a lot of work and where things are currently teetering. In retail, for example," de Vries said.
The first drivers have now been 'loaned' to these companies. "We treat every application personally, because it is often customised after all. That way we see what the possibilities are." The financial settlement of the loan is coordinated by mutual agreement. 'Peer loan documents' that can serve as guidelines are provided by TLN.
