Operations @ Optima – April 2020 Update
These are unprecedented times. The business community globally, in Canada, and in Ontario is being impacted by the current crisis. In response, both the Canadian and the Ontario Governments have announced certain measures that directly impact our operations.
With this update we want to share with you the actions we are taking to ensure the safety of our employees, customers, partners, and our suppliers. We have adapted our way of carrying out our business activities.
Delayed or Halted Activities
All lab based hardware prototyping is currently suspended. The nature of the work necessitates that these are carried out inside of our labs. Locally contracted custom parts, ancillary parts manufacturing and CNC machined components are delayed due to the government ordered shutdown.
The status of other parts remains pending, awaiting our approval once our shipping/receiving department can be re-opened and we can resume normal operations.
Electronic component sourcing is delayed or on-hold as many components are in short supply or on allocation. Several of our long standing suppliers are facing delays due to impaired manufacturing abilities of their own.
On-Going Work
As we continue to work remotely, we are keeping on-site staff reduced to a minimum to ensure our systems are kept operational and functional. We are using virtual development meetings and make extensive use of file sharing and streaming to keep the remaining development effort on track as best we can under the current circumstances.
Our hardware and software development teams are and remain engaged and actively working on their currently assigned projects.
Safety First
In line with our “Safety First” principle, we are following the guidelines issued by our local health authorities. This includes making sure that we continue to operate in accordance with all updated protocols and daily advisories.
To protect our employees, we have issued a set of simple guidelines relating to social distancing and hygiene, as well as HR procedures for quarantine and sick leave.
Essential Services
Optima has been deemed a critical supplier. As a provider of telecom infrastructure components, our products perform key aspects in monitoring some of Canada’s largest telecom networks. Given our role in provisioning, maintaining or repairing telecom services, Optima has been designated an essential services business under government definitions.
Technical Support
Optima continues to provide technical support services. For the time being, these will be restricted to electronic delivery means only. Customers are asked to send all requests to our main Optima Support e-mail: [email protected].
Customers subscribing to our 24/7 phone support service have been given a special after-hours contact number to be used. Otherwise, leave a voice mail message when calling our regular Optima Support phone line for assistance. Messages will be processed in the order they are received.
RMA Procedures
All RMA requests must be sent to [email protected]. Optima will be prioritizing requests. Only those deemed critical will be accepted and processed at this stage. We are currently asking customers to restrict RMA requests to those cases that impact the delivery of essential services. We will provide individual estimates about the expected turn-around times when RMA numbers are issued.
Timelines
The latest provincial shutdown order has been extended until May 6, 2020. This will prolong the on-going business closures and with it delays the resumption of our regular office hours.
Prior delivery commitments will be adjusted. Any updates will have to account for the time lost due to the current shutdown orders and subsequent delays in restarting operations. We fully expect that access to locally manufactured components will be restored once all current government stay-at-home orders are lifted.
We are diligently planning to resume regular R&D procedures and the ramping up of production. However, at this time, all outgoing shipments, including shipments of existing products have been on hold as of April 7, 2020.
Outlook
We count ourselves extremely lucky that the whole Optima team and our families remain in good health.
We also want to send our heartfelt thanks to our existing customers. Your continued support is very much appreciated.
In turn, we are committed as ever to finish the current projects as soon as possible during these difficult times. However due to the unforeseen current global situation, we can no longer commit to any fixed delivery dates at this time.
The health and safety of our employees and their families remains our first and foremost priority. We continue to follow local and government guidelines and will monitor the current situation closely, adjusting our operations and procedures whenever required or warranted.
Ralf Doewich
Optima Tele.com, Inc.