Miller Magazine Issue: 151 July 2022

90 INTERVIEW MILLER / JULY 2022 ious industries on time with exceptional quality. We de- velop and complete multi-million Euro projects with preci- sion, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness in mind, executed by 100s of our highly-skilled, multi-talented employees equipped with expert application and design capabilities. How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted your industry? What have been the recent changes and trends in your business since the pandemic began? Surprisingly, the COVID pandemic didn’t impact Cimbria or the entire industry as severely as we thought it would. Of course, investments went on hold and business slowed down, but we survived relative- ly unscathed. Food security actually increased due to heightened hygiene awareness across the world. I think the saving grace was our ability to adapt to the unfortunate circumstances and make positive chang- es to the business and how we operate internally. We embraced remote working and offered our employ- ees more flexibility, which helped them navigate and soothe pandemic stress. Many of our employees con- tinue working from home, and I believe it has boosted their efficiency and productivity. There’s really some- thing to be said about a healthy work and life balance. The Ukraine-Russia war has increased the volatility in the grain markets. How have the increased geopolitical risks affected your industry? Even though the Ukraine-Russia war is still in its infancy, the industry has undoubtedly been affected due to both coun- tries ceasing the import and export of goods and services. Certain regions such as Poland, the Czech Republic and the Middle East have increased production to counteract supply chain volatility and reduce food shortage pressures. We also see that businesses and multinationals are also moving their operations to other countries to prevent financial loss. How do you see the grain processing, handling, and storage industry evolve in the future? Despite the apparent global setbacks resulting from re- sidual COVID aftereffects and the Ukraine-Russia war, the industry has a bright future ahead. I expect to see a sharper focus on flexibility, efficiency and production yield. And, with food safety now experiencing more global attention than ever before, we are ensuring approved food-grade solutions are integrated early in the value chain. Which countries do you see as a potential new market for Cimbria? We’ve worked hard to get Cimbria’s portfolio internationally