Porsche focuses on speed of a different kind

For endless decades, Porsche high-performance cars have been defined by their abilities to speed on race tracks and motorways, offering driving capabilities that pump up the adrenaline. Raved the world for some of its iconic vehicles, the company is now looking at a speed of a completely new kind.

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With plants shut for six weeks and only now gearing back up amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the Stuttgart-based company is hoping to be lightning quick in resuming full-scale operations whenever the pandemic is deemed over. CEO Oliver Blume is optimistic. "At first we planned to stop production for only two weeks. But it ended up being six weeks. One of the reasons had to do with bottlenecks in the global supply chains. That was very painful. But we won’t be deterred: we’re looking ahead and want to get back up to speed as soon as the crisis is over," he said. "I see major opportunities for Porsche in the future. Over the last few years we’ve launched a huge product campaign, including the Taycan at the end of 2019. It gives us a superb foundation to build on."

The Taycan EV is indeed one of the most awaited cars from Porsche and has managed to generate quite a lot of buzz. Unveiled in September of 2019, the vehicle has reportedly started arriving at US dealerships but the rollout has been slowed by Covid-19-related reasons. Blume has said that the prevailing situation has allowed the company to closely look at its supply chains. "Right now we’re concentrating on essentials. For the supply chains, that means thinking about which transport routes are really necessary, and how we can reduce complexity in our logistics," he said. "Porsche will end up being even more robust in this regard. At the same time, we’re also looking at the big picture and asking ourselves how sustainable our supply chain is. To answer this question our corporate group has developed a rating system for suppliers, which includes both environmental and social criteria."

Will the pandemic take a toll on the automotive world's push towards electric mobility? Blume has an emphatic response. "Absolutely not. We’ve been pursuing a clear and sustainable product strategy at Porsche for years now. We’re going to keep following this path," he said.

Note: The quotes of Oliver Blume above are from a Porsche in-house interaction.