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Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response Plan

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response Plan

News // July 6, 2020

As we continue to see the coronavirus pandemic play out, we want to provide our customers with an update as well as some resources to help you navigate this unprecedented time.

Continued Operations
As an essential service, Suddath has been able to continue operating throughout the pandemic. We have been able to do this safely by implementing rigorous health and safety precautions throughout our branch network, including with our drivers and crews, and by dividing our workforce into A/B/C teams as part of our business continuity plan. In this plan, the A teams are key team members who are onsite overseeing our daily operations, our B teams are the back-up leaders who are working virtually and can step in if the A team becomes compromised, and our C team members are functions that can be performed virtually and are working remote to help enable a more controlled environment within our physical operating locations. We are now shifting more of those team members back into operations as customer activities are picking up – balanced, of course, with appropriate risk management controls, many of which are outlined below.

Focus on Health and Safety
We continue to follow robust health and safety protocols throughout our operations and branches, and recently completed a pilot to safely bring some of our team members who have been working virtually back into our corporate headquarters.

Protocols include:

Self-screening at home for symptoms
No-contact temperature scans administered onsite upon arrival
Six-foot social distancing
Facemasks worn when away from desks
Limited building entrances and designated traffic patterns in hallways and stairwells
Occupancy limits for elevators and breakrooms
Designated cleaning stations for shared equipment and regular sanitizing of high-use surfaces throughout the day, in addition to regular daily cleaning schedule

Back to Work Planner
We understand that preparing to transition your employees back into the office may be overwhelming and stressful. To make this transition easier for you, we created a Back to Work Planner that takes you step-by-step through the process, providing helpful guidance to ensure your workspace is arranged to meet new social distancing guidelines and helping to make your employees feel safer and more comfortable in your updated environment.

The planner includes:

Step-by-step instructions on how to prepare your office
Visual representations of reconfigured workspaces
Convenient, interactive checklists to work through the process

Click here to download the Back to Work Planner.

Other Resources
If you need additional support or information about how we are responding to our clients’ needs during the pandemic, please click here to visit our COVID-19 landing page.

Please stay safe and healthy and continue to reach out to your account manager or move coordinator to let us know how we can help support you during this time

Update: April 24, 2020

To our valued customers,

Last week, I shared some of the innovative ways we’re supporting customers through The Next Normal, what we are calling the period of change and adaptability we are entering in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic.

In preparation for The Next Normal, we are creating a process to evolve our business beyond just business assessment and continuity planning from the COVID-19 crisis, to now focus on what our business services, operations and customer needs will be in a post-crisis business environment. To do that, we have adopted methodology we’ve named ARROW to guide our strategy through each stage of this process:

Using ARROW, we are beginning to evolve the business from “what is” (or “what was”) to “what will be,” and what our roadmap will look like as we progress into The Next Normal.

As you can see from the chart above, we have largely completed our assessment of the impact of the pandemic and developed a plan to ensure business continuity and a remote workforce. We are now turning our focus to leverage what we have learned during the crisis to develop a strong plan on what our business will look like as we exit the crisis.

Whether it’s shifting buyer behavior, changing workplace and operational environments, new government regulations or stricter attention to health, safety and environment practices, we know that your business priorities may be different going forward than what they were prior to the crisis.

Our goal is to adapt with our customers’ changing needs, priorities and processes post-crisis, ensuring we are prepared for changes in both our industry and yours. By aligning our services, practices and technology with your evolving needs, we will help you be more responsive to your own customers and win in your market.

We look forward to sharing more on these strategies in the upcoming weeks. In the meantime, just a reminder that we have added resources to our website to make sure you know how we can help you transition to The Next Normal, ranging from keeping your employees safe to keeping your business running – and even knowing how to prepare for your own residential move. We are also keeping our news page up to date so you can understand exactly how our operations may be impacted and how we are continuing to adapt our response to the evolving Coronavirus situation.

Please stay safe and healthy and continue to reach out to let us know how we can help support you during this time.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: April 16, 2020

Dear valued customer,

“The new normal” is a phrase we’re hearing a lot lately as we all try to adjust to a very different day-to-day during the Coronavirus pandemic. People across the globe are juggling new work arrangements, school closings, and orders to stay home and socially distance. It feels anything but normal and yet somehow, we have quickly adapted.

Times like these force us to pivot and think differently. Here at Suddath^®, we are guided by our core value of Innovation, which helps us face the new challenges this situation brings with creativity, determination and optimism.

We are not simply adjusting to “the new normal”. We are focused on The Next Normal: taking what we are learning during this period of change and adaptability and incorporating it into the design of how we work going forward.

I’d like to share just a couple of the innovative ways we are adapting our practices to support our customers through The Next Normal.

Health and Safety Kits
For our residential moving customers, we are starting to roll out a Health and Safety Kit Program. For every interstate consumer residential move serviced directly by a Suddath team, we are sending a care package ahead of the moving crew’s arrival containing supplies the customer may want on hand during the move: antibacterial soap, hand sanitizer, disinfectant sprays or wipes and gloves. The box also contains helpful recommendations for the customer, such as designating an area where the moving crew can wash and dry their hands regularly to limit the spread of germs. Also included are details on the protocols Suddath is taking to limit exposure through proven safety measures, including:

Standing six feet apart at all times during the move
Using personal protection equipment including gloves and masks (all crew members arrive to the home with Suddath-issued masks)
Forgoing handshakes
Limiting handling of the household goods
Sanitizing shared surfaces including hand trucks, dollies and other materials used
Washing or sanitizing hands after touching shared surfaces, or at least every two hours

We hope that the proactive step to send residential customers a Health and Safety Kit will put their minds at ease that they are in good and safe hands on moving day.

Office Return Program
With most employees now working from home, we are already planning for their inevitable return to the workplace. Our Office Return Program provides support ranging from retrieving equipment from employees’ homes to ensuring in-office workstations are completely functional. This program is designed to accommodate the unique concerns customers and their employees may have as they transition back to the office, including:

Convenient scheduled window for office equipment pickup at employees’ homes
Social distancing process to avoid entry into employees’ homes
Complete inventory of employee equipment and contents
Delivery back to the office with reconnections, cable management and connectivity testing
Cleaning workstations prior to employees’ return
General on-site assistance to support employee moves back in
Adjusting office space to meet social distancing recommendations

We know many companies might not be able to bring back their workforces to the office yet, but by creating the Office Return Program, we will be ready whenever they are.

As we continue to pivot and prepare for The Next Normal, we have added new resources to our website to make sure you know how we can help you, from keeping your employees safe to keeping your business running and even knowing how to prepare for your own residential move. We are also keeping our news page up to date so you can understand exactly how our operations may be impacted and how we are continuing to adapt our response to the evolving Coronavirus situation.

Please stay safe and healthy and continue reach out to let us know how we can help support you during The Next Normal.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: April 10, 2020

To our valued customers,

As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to unfold, Suddath^® is committed to keeping you informed, engaged, well-supported and – most importantly – safe. To that end, I wanted to share updates on the health and safety measures we are taking to protect you.

Suddath’s Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) teams, in coordination with our COVID-19 taskforce, have been working hard as the coronavirus situation unfolds to protect our workers, customers and partners. Below are some of the preventative measures they have taken to ensure we are working safely.

Expanded GHP Program: We revamped our existing Good Hygiene Practices (GHP) program to address the new health risks associated with COVID-19 and create a more robust program that supports our entire organization. To support this effort, new GHP trainings, supplies, personal protective equipment (PPE) and awareness materials were shared across all areas of the organization and to the strategic suppliers and service partners across our network.

Health and Risk Questionnaire: We implemented a customized health and risk questionnaire for customers and suppliers to assess risk exposure; determine next steps related to contact tracing, disinfection and stakeholder notifications as necessary; and determine optimal service scheduling with customers. This process allows us to take immediate steps to reduce the risk of COVID-19 exposure for workers, customers and suppliers alike, while allowing for essential business to operate safely.

Coordination with Health Officials: Our EHS team connects directly with Department of Health offices around the clock to ensure our business practices are aligned with the most current science and health recommendations, and follow the best advice available to protect our workers, customers, partners and communities where we work.

Revamped OSHA Programs: To address the new health risks COVID-19 presents, we quickly redesigned our Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) programs, including PPE Hazard Assessment, Bloodborne Pathogen Program and Job Safety Analysis tools. New tools are being rolled out weekly to our operations teams to ensure we not only meet but exceed the basic health requirements and ensure we operate our essential business responsibly.

These measures represent just a few of the operational changes we have instituted to ensure that our entire global operation is doing everything we can to prevent further spread of this deadly disease. We know that this can be an uncertain time. Rest assured that Suddath is committed to your safety and wellbeing as we continue to deliver essential services to our customers across the globe.

As a reminder, we remain open for business to support your needs, within the bounds of state, local, and federal requirements and in alignment with our designation as an essential service provider. For the latest updates about our operations, please click here to see our updated operational impact chart.

Please stay safe and reach out to your account manager with any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: April 6, 2020

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: April 6, 2020

South Florida Operations Impacted
Late last week, Governor DeSantis announced a stay-at-home order for the state of Florida. Our Fort Lauderdale and Miami operations are now following the same protocols as the rest of our Florida locations, which were already under stay-at-home orders:

Aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate.
Providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.

For any questions about how this impacts your services, please contact your account manager.

Click here to see our updated operational impact chart for all locations. This chart is reviewed daily and kept up to date. Please check back as often as needed for the latest updates.

We are here for you during and after the crisis. We understand that many of our customers are adjusting business activities during the next 6-8 weeks and will have new needs and priorities. Rest assured that Suddath is here to help you navigate these changes. Please click here for a list of some of the creative services we can provide you during and after the pandemic.

Update: April 3, 2020

To our valued customers:

Clearly, COVID-19 has changed the way everyone lives and works, and it is requiring our customers to adjust in ways they never expected. Suddath embraces innovation as a core value of our company, and we are leaning into that ethic to help our clients adapt in this unprecedented and evolving environment.

First, know that we are fully open for business across all of our service lines and in all geographies. As local and state governments rolled out executive orders to shelter in place, we quickly adapted, moving all employees to work from home if they are able to complete their jobs remotely. We have increased IT support and have seen no disruptions to business. And we’re minimizing our employees’ physical contact by leveraging technology for end-to-end services, including video surveys and walkthroughs. At our physical operating locations, we have also deployed labor rotational strategies to minimize the risk of business interruption in the event of an exposure to COVID-19.

Now that we are in a stable state operating under a “new normal,” we are focused on meeting the unique needs of our customers at this moment in time.

Suddath is fortunate to have the financial and operational strength to weather this storm and be here for our clients throughout this period and on the other side of it. With our size and resources, we will have the ability to scale up once activity picks up again and will be ready to deliver a higher volume of services in a compressed period of time.

Although essentially every Suddath operating location in the US is now under some form of restriction, many states and counties are issuing their mandates using the same reference to the US CISA Critical Infrastructure criteria, which allow for flexibility for Suddath as a critical service provider for commercial and logistics operations. Household goods operations can be more limited in certain markets by driver/crew availability. To help customers understand and track the operational impacts of these restrictions on our business, we have created an impact chart, which we are updating continuously. Click here to see our updated operational impact chart.

Suddath was founded 100 years ago in the wake of the last pandemic. We have survived and thrived with an unshakeable commitment to our employees and our customers and a focus on innovation.

We have listened to your concerns and your changing needs during this crisis, and have adapted to provide creative and agile services to support your immediate needs, including moving and setting up employees to work-from-home, space planning and reconfiguration for social distancing, support setting up hospital facilities, moving and storage for college dorms, distribution of critical products in support of essential services, and more. Please click here for a list of some of the creative services we can provide you during and after the pandemic.

Please let us know how we can help you overcome any challenges you are experiencing in this extraordinary time. Together, we will stand strong in the face of this crisis and emerge stronger and more resilient than ever.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 31, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Impact Chart

Essentially every Suddath operating location in the US is now under some form of restriction, and many states/counties are issuing their mandates using the same reference to the US CISA Critical Infrastructure criteria, which allow for flexibility for Suddath as a critical service provider for commercial and logistics operations. Household goods operations can be more limited in certain markets by driver/crew availability.

To help customers understand and track the operational impacts of these restrictions on our business, we have created an impact chart.

Click here to see our updated operational impact chart.

This chart is updated here daily. Please check back as often as needed.

For any questions about how this impacts your services, please contact your account manager.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 26, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: March 26, 2020

Singapore Office Reopens
We are pleased to announce that we are reopening the Singapore location for our relocation management brand, Sterling Lexicon, with rotating teams now working in the office. Please reach out to your account manager if you have questions about your services in the region.

Stay-at-Home and Essential Business Mandates
Additional local mandates in the U.S. were announced in the past day. Below is a summary of how our locations have been impacted:

Minnesota Stay at Home Mandate (effective March 27, 11:59 PM)
- Minneapolis/St. Paul (Suddath): Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.
Orange County and Osceola County, FL
- Orlando (Suddath): Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.
Pinellas County, FL
- Tampa (Suddath): Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.

If you have questions about how this may impact your services, please reach out to your account manager.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 25, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: March 25, 2020

Stay-at-Home Mandate for Charlotte, NC
Mecklenburg County in North Carolina issued a Stay-at-Home mandate that goes into effect tomorrow, March 26. This impacts our operations in the following ways:

Charlotte (Suddath): Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.

South Florida Closes Non-Essential Businesses
Broward, Miami Dade and Palm Beach counties in Florida have mandated closures for all “non-essential business”. This impacts our operations in the following ways:

Miami and Ft. Lauderdale (Suddath): Commercial/ Logistics/ warehousing operations are not affected by the current orders as part of the Critical Infrastructure exemptions. We are aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate.

If you have questions about how this may impact your services, please reach out to your account manager.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 24, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: March 24, 2020

Jacksonville, FL “Work from Home” Order
The City of Jacksonville has ordered that all employees who can perform their job duties remotely (i.e. at home) are required to do so until further notice. We recognize that some of our office-based employees may need to go into the office periodically to complete some of their tasks, but they should remain in the office only as long as necessary to complete a specific task. Production personnel performing essential services are exempt from this order but should practice social distancing and good hygiene practices per CDC guidelines at all times.

Stay-at-Home and Shelter-in-Place Mandates
Additional Stay-at-Home and Shelter-in-Place mandates were announced in the past day. Below is a summary of how our locations have been impacted:

United Kingdom
- London and Newbury (Sterling Lexicon): These offices, along with all Sterling Lexicon offices globally, are now closed, but business operations are continuing as normal with office employees working from home. Warehouses in London, as well as those in Paris and Madrid, remain open for business currently, and we are assessing any necessary changes to those operations on a daily basis.
Washington
- Seattle (Suddath): Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.
Atlanta, GA
- Suddath Atlanta: Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.
- Sterling Lexicon Atlanta: Office closed, but business operations continuing as normal. All employees working from home.
Tarrant County, TX
- Dallas-Ft. Worth (Suddath): Continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.
Oregon
- Portland (Suddath): Correction: Yesterday’s communication mentioned a stay-at-home mandate for Oregon but did not mention our operations in that location. Portland is continuing operations but aligning household goods operations with the details of the mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.

If you have questions about how this may impact your services, please reach out to your account manager.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 23, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: March 23, 2020

Stay-at-Home and Shelter-in-Place Mandates in the U.S.
Over the weekend, additional Stay-at-Home and Shelter-in-Place mandates were announced in several U.S. states and counties. Below is a list of the current mandates we are aware of and how they affect our operations:

California
- San Jose and La Mirada (Los Angeles): Continuing operations but limiting household goods operations. Limiting commercial operations to support customers who are providing essential services.
- Irvine: Sterling Lexicon (relocation management brand) office closed, but business operations continuing as normal. All employees working from home.
Connecticut
- Shelton: Sterling Lexicon office closed, but business operations continuing as normal. All employees working from home.
Ohio
- Cincinnati: Sterling Lexicon office closed, but business operations continuing as normal. All employees working from home.
New Jersey
- Totowa: Sterling Lexicon office closed, but business operations continuing as normal. All employees working from home.
The following are states that have Stay-at-Home and/or Shelter-in-Place mandates but have no physical Suddath/Sterling Lexicon/Perdue locations. We are aligning our household goods operations with the specific details of each respective mandate and providing limited commercial operations to support only those customers who are providing essential services.
- Delaware
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- New York
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- St. Louis, MO
- Kansas City, MO
- New Orleans
- San Miguel County, CO
- Athens-Clarke County, GA
- Blaine County, ID
- Dallas County, TX

If you have questions about how this may impact your services, please reach out to your account manager.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 20, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: March 20, 2020

Los Angeles Operations: Effective March 19, 2020: Portions of Los Angeles, specifically Orange County, have issued a Public Health Order intended to slow the spread of COVID-19. The provisions of this order are very similar to the “Shelter in Place” notice issued by San Jose.

We are complying with this order and continuing to follow guidance from UniGroup and the California Moving & Storage Association, that our operations fall under essential services for the public and those supporting such essential services (including shipping).

This will affect operations in our La Mirada location in the following ways:
- We will continue operations but are limiting our household goods operations.
- We are limiting commercial operations to support customers who are providing essential services.
  Late Thursday, the Governor of California implemented an executive “stay at home” order for all Californians. We are still assessing the implications of the order, but believe the impacts previously communicated regarding our San Jose operations, as well as the impacts to La Mirada detailed above remain unchanged.
Sterling Lexicon Irvine, California Office Closed: Effective March 20, 2020: In light of the latest California “stay at home” order, the Irvine location for our relocation management brand Sterling Lexicon will be closed and all employees will be directed to work from home until the order is lifted. Business operations will continue as usual.

If you have questions about how these changes may impact your service, please reach out to your account manager.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 18, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

Below are the most recent actions Suddath has taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to best protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and partners.

Operational Updates: March 18, 2020

Site Closure: Effective March 17, 2020: Our facility in San Jose, CA has been impacted by mandatory government orders for certain counties in Northern California to “shelter in place“.

We are complying with this order and also following guidance from UniGroup and the California Moving & Storage Association, that our operations fall under essential services for the public and those supporting such essential services (including shipping).

This will affect our operations in the San Jose location in the following ways:
- Continuing, but limiting household goods operations
- Limiting commercial operations to support our businesses providing essential services only
  If you have questions about how this may impact your service in the region, please reach out to your account manager.
Remote Workforce: Effective March 18, 2020: We have begun allowing all employees at all locations who have both the ability to work remotely and have manager approval, to work from home. Work from home timing, scheduling and protocols vary by location and department, based on business and local market conditions, and as determined by senior leadership.
Home Office Restrictions: In our Home Office in Jacksonville, FL, we are following CDC guidelines and adopting a self-imposed policy for limit on-site employees and contractors to groups of no more than 10 at any given time.

Additional Support Services

Support transitioning employees to working from home

Deliver cartons to employees for packing items that they will use to work from home
Provide packing assistance
Perform disconnect and reconnect services for computers and peripherals
Provide computer wraps to protect equipment during move
Move bulky items, including ergonomic chairs and sit/stand desks into homes
Organize home office spaces

Help practicing safe social distancing in the workspace

Space planning to spread out workforce
Relocate employee workstations within the office
IT disconnect and reconnect
Relocate employees to home offices

Flexible and secure storage to support your supply chain

Digital warehouse management system gives visibility to inventory
Mitigated risks to our operational team to ensure the continuity of your business
Pandemic response focused on scaling with you as you normalize your business activities
Nationwide reach for consistency at multiple locations

For more information about services we’re offering to support our clients during this crisis, please reach out to your account manager.

We are following guidance from the CDC and WHO, as well as local country mandates, and will continue to update you with any significant developments or impacts to our business.

If any of your company’s questions are not addressed in this communication, please contact your Suddath account manager.

We hope you and everyone in your organization is safe.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 16, 2020

To our valued customers,

As we see large segments of the US and global economies temporarily shutting down to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus, it is more important than ever that we communicate and put the proper planning in place to get us through this unprecedented time. Our priorities and focus continue to be to protect our employees, our customers and our company. The situation continues to evolve rapidly, with new information coming out by the hour. We understand this can cause some uncertainty or anxiety, so I’d like to take you through how Suddath is responding to these changing conditions.

Supporting our Customers. Our plan continues to be to maintain normal working procedures to the largest extent possible, without compromising in any way the safety and wellbeing of our employees and customers. We want you, our valued customers, to know that as long as you are moving your employees, business or products, Suddath is open for business and we are there to support your needs.
Business Continuity. Behind the scenes, we have been working on strengthening and operationalizing our business continuity plans, including expanding our “work from home” capabilities to enable a temporary remote workforce. On that basis, we continue to be fully operational.

Our plan to support your business is as follows:
- Our Home Office location, as well our field operating locations, will remain open for business as long as possible. Our plan will be to keep the offices open unless we identify an infected employee, the community spread of the virus warrants we close the location to mitigate the risks for our colleagues, or we are required by the appropriate government authority to cease operations.
- Our Home Office and field operating locations will remain open to provide a place to work for employees who prefer to work in our regular office environment or are unable to work remotely. To the extent possible, we are attempting to provide a sense of normalcy for our valued employees and customers when the situation is anything but normal. In the case of our Home Office, we will be respectful of CDC guidelines and will adopt a self-imposed policy to limit on-site employees to under 50 at any given time.
- Notwithstanding the above, we have mobilized our remote working capabilities and begun to deploy our employees on that basis so that we are not dependent on our physical locations as the only means to support your business.
  - Vulnerable employees in “at risk” categories for the virus are required to work remotely for their personal safety.
  - We have divided our operational teams in the field into “Team A” and “Team B” working from separate locations in our markets. In the event there is an infected team, we will sanitize the location immediately and then deploy the non-affected team to the location to ensure business continuity.
  - We have identified critical functions. Critical functions will be sub-divided, with some staff working at our Home Office or operating locations, and others working remotely. This mitigates the risk for our customers and will ensure uninterrupted operations for you.

Next Steps
So, what does this mean for you?

First and most importantly, Suddath is open for business and our expectation is that we will support your business requirements during this crisis. We have taken careful measures to mitigate risks to our employees while ensuring the continuity of your business.
Second, we are here for you during and after the crisis. We understand that many of our customers are restricting business activities during the next 6-8 weeks and will have limited requirements for our services. We will adjust accordingly. However, the crisis is temporary and will end, and Suddath will be there for you as you get back to business. Our pandemic response plan is not only focused on how to manage the crisis, but how to exit the crisis, and our plans will focus on how to scale the business back to normal operations as you come back online and normalize your business activities.
We have been in business for 100 years and will be here for 100 more. In our industry, not everyone has the financial and human resources to survive such an economic shock and guarantee the continuity of YOUR business. At Suddath, we are blessed with strong family ownership, a strong balance sheet with more than ample liquidity and the best team in the industry to support your needs. We will get through this temporary and unprecedented shut down of large segments of the US and global economy and will help you get back to the business of running your business.

We know this is a challenging time for your business and your employees. We expect things to get more difficult before they get better. But this situation is temporary and collectively we will work through it. Regardless of whether you are restricting your business or operating as normal, we want you to know we value your business and the trust you have put in our company and our employees to serve you. We stand with you in these challenging times.

We hope you and everyone in your organization is safe.

Sincerely,

Michael Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

Update: March 10, 2020

Dear Valued Customers,

As we continue to learn more about the Coronavirus (COVID-19), Suddath wants to update our clients and partners on the impact to our business.

The evolution of the Coronavirus is a fluid situation, and one which is top of mind for many people given the stories in the media and the impacts we are seeing globally as a result of the outbreak. We are mindful that may have an impact on our customers and partners and may prompt many questions.

Suddath’s plan is to continue running the business and serving our customers without interruption to the extent possible. At the same time, we are being vigilant as the situation evolves and taking appropriate and timely actions to mitigate risks for our employees, customers and partners.

Below is a summary of the actions we are taking and what impact, if any, you can expect to your service:

Coronavirus Taskforce
The Suddath Companies has formed a global cross-functional working group to lead our response to the evolving COVID-19 outbreak. The goal is to ensure the protection of our employees, our customers and the health of the overall business.

Travel Restrictions
Due to the rapidly evolving nature of this situation, we have chosen to limit company travel to that which is essential to support our clients. Employees are required to obtain executive approval before traveling for work and are advised to meet in person only if requested by a client/partner. For employees traveling on personal business, we have asked them to notify their immediate managers. Determinations about work or process changes will be made on a case-by-case basis, based on employees’ recent travel and symptoms, following guidance from the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization, as well as local country mandates.

Impacted Employees
At this point, none of our employees have been directly impacted by the virus. We are engaging in an interactive process with employees, customers and partners as needed to determine whether they have been impacted and what impact, if any, that will have on our operations going forward.

Mitigating Risks
To address the potential risk of virus spread among our employee and customer populations, we have taken the additional actions below:

Ensuring all work sites are stocked with disinfecting products so all work tools and equipment can be sanitized daily or as needed throughout the day
Asking residential customers and relocating employees whether they have traveled to virus hotspots or are exhibiting symptoms of the virus
Allowing employees to work from home as needed if they are ill and/or part of a high-risk population for contracting the virus
Limiting customers/vendor visits to our sites
In situations where our employees are working on-site at a client location, we are fully complying with any and all local site guidelines put in place to mitigate risks
In early “hot spot” markets such as Shanghai and Singapore, we initiated actions to have our employees work from home in support of our clients and transferees to mitigate their exposure in public settings

We are following guidance from the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization, as well as local country mandates, and will update you with any significant developments or impacts to our business.

Please find below a comprehensive response to the most common questions our customers have regarding our response to the outbreak.

If any of your company’s questions are not addressed in this document, please contact your Suddath account manager.

Sincerely,

Mike Brannigan
President & CEO, The Suddath Companies

COVID-19 Response: Frequently Asked Questions

Updated: March 10, 2020

What actions has your company taken to respond to COVID-19?

Mitigating Risks
To address the potential risk of virus spread among our employee and customer populations, we have taken the additional actions below:

Ensuring all work sites are stocked with disinfecting products so all work tools and equipment can be sanitized daily or as needed throughout the day
Asking residential customers and relocating employees whether they have traveled to virus hotspots or are exhibiting symptoms of the virus
Allowing employees to work from home as needed if they are ill and/or part of a high-risk population for contracting the virus
Limiting customers/vendor visits to our sites
In situations where our employees are working on-site at a client location, we are fully complying with any and all local site guidelines put in place to mitigate risks
In early “hot spot” markets such as Shanghai and Singapore, we initiated actions to have our employees work from home in support of our clients and transferees to mitigate their exposure in public settings

Are you experiencing or do you anticipate any disruption to your supply chain or other disruptions that could impact your ability to deliver services?

As a service provider, our people and our assets (trucks and warehouses) represent the core of our service delivery mechanism. Therefore, our primary disruption would be an outbreak of the virus in a facility or among our crews or support teams. At this point, we have not had any outbreaks at any of our locations. To mitigate the risk of infection, we implemented the actions delineated above and have also advised employees that if they have symptoms, to stay home, seek medical attention, communicate with their frontline manager and avoid contact with colleagues.

We are not experiencing any disruptions to our U.S. domestic supply chain at this time. To date, the only disruptions that we are seeing to our U.S. business have been customer-imposed, where certain customers are closing their offices or limiting vendor access to their campuses. We understand that our customers may decide to change or reschedule services due to their own needs related to the virus, and we will respect and comply with those changes as requested.

In highly affected markets such as China, Italy and, to a lesser degree, South Korea, we are seeing delays or limited availability of agent crews to provide in-market origin and destination services. Should these delays continue, it could impact the timeliness of supporting transferees in and out of those markets.

Concerning materials and supplies, we rely primarily on packaging and materials which are sourced directly in local markets, so we do not anticipate any impact to those materials at this time. The only exception is for moving blankets, which are primarily manufactured outside of the U.S; however, we have coordinated with our supplier to ensure we have ample supply to cover our operations. We will also opportunistically pre-purchase select materials and supplies if we believe there are emerging supply chain risks.

Regarding our government moving services, Transcom Europe has published a local message regarding a “stop” for Permanent Change of Station (PCS) moves in and out of Vicenza, Italy.

Will COVID-19 directly impact any of your service providers?

We are assessing daily for any impact to our service providers; however, we anticipate minimal impact, if any, due to the nature of our supply chain. We do not have any sole-source providers and typically work with multiple service providers for all contracted services, ensuring that we have ample coverage to service our customers.

The risks that we see with regard to our service providers are more market-based risks, where governments and businesses take broader measures to keep people at home to stop the spread of the virus, as we have seen in China and now in Italy. In these cases, we would expect to see impacts to our service providers and even our diverse supply chain would be impacted.

Our desire to keep our service providers financially healthy by continuing to use them to service our customers is a key component of our mitigation plan.

Do you anticipate any issues with continuation of normal operations in your business? Do you have mitigation plans in place to ensure you can meet your customer commitments?

At this point, we do not anticipate any disruption to our operations, beyond the potential risks detailed above. For many areas of our business, we use a mix of employees, contractors and temporary labor, which helps to prevent service disruptions. For our customer service and support functions, we operate from several hubs across the U.S. and around the world. Therefore, we can divert business to be handled by employees at other locations if one of our sites is impacted.

As noted above, we have taken precautions to keep our workplaces sanitized and are educating employees about how to protect themselves from contracting/spreading the virus, including but not limited to hand-washing instructions from the CDC and guidance on interacting directly with customers in person.

Do you have adequate stock of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) that may be required when working in an infected site?

Yes, we are taking steps to ensure that our locations have appropriate PPE in the event that a site becomes infected.

What are your trigger levels for communicating and processing future changes in service levels/expectations if needed?

Our Coronavirus Taskforce is meeting weekly (and more often, if needed) to determine whether any actions need to be taken which would impact our operations. That team is also tasked with determining when/what needs to be communicated to our employees, customers and partners.

The well-being of our employees and customers is of utmost importance to us. In the event that we have an outbreak or issue in a particular location, we will notify customers in the affected markets as soon as practical.

Does your company have a pandemic response plan/business continuity plan?

Yes, The Suddath Companies maintains a pandemic response plan, which includes plans to adapt our business according to changing conditions, including but not limited to:

Utilizing cloud-hosted applications to minimize site risk and ensure business continuity
Allowing employees to work remotely as necessary
Increasing server capacity to allow for additional remote workers
Redirecting operations to alternate locations within our U.S. domestic and global hubs
Redirecting inbound customer calls to alternate locations
Modifying work activities based on threat levels

Has your company issued communications or conducted training regarding COVID-19?

Yes, The Suddath Companies is sending regular communications to our employees, with advisories regarding travel and business continuity plans. We are also taking the following steps to educate and prepare our workforce:

Educating employees about preventative measures such as hand washing and site sanitation
Advising moving crews about revised protocols for interacting with customers
Providing FAQs to frontline managers to help them support their workforce and customers as the situation continues to evolve