Toyota's plant in Valenciennes is the first industrial site to reopen in France since the start of containment. Europe 1 visited the site on Tuesday morning. Pierre, a bodywork worker, says he is reassured by the safety rules in place even if he recognizes "a little concern".

REPORT

Since Tuesday morning, the French Toyota factory located in Valenciennes resumed its activity, making the first industrial site to reopen in France. Like many other sites, it had closed as part of the containment put in place to fight the epidemic of coronavirus. Europe 1 was able to accompany the workers inside the site on Tuesday, after a temperature measurement and drastic security measures.

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© Lionel Gougelot

Photo @Lionel Gougelot / Europe 1

Temperature measurement at the entrance, protective masks, visors, plexiglass ...

Walking through the various workshops, we can see that the factory is still a little dormant. The first vehicles will not leave the chains until Thursday, specifies the spokesman of the direction. Before that, a whole organization had to be reviewed, such as respecting safety distances in the body shop for example. 

"What we have chosen to do on this line is to buy plexis, and install them so as to guarantee the distance of one meter and the fact that there is no screw- directly between operators ", explains Laurent Laroux, assembly production manager. 

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Temperature measurement at the entrance, protective masks ... so many somewhat tedious rules which employees must comply with. "We tried the visors to see if it was comfortable, if we could adapt them. It is a constraint but it is important for the others," said Sébastien Boulanger, part of the body shops.

© Lionel Gougelot

Photo @Lionel Gougelot / Europe 1

Some workers worried about delay in vehicle production

Obviously, these health procedures are well received by the workers. "The masks are reassuring. There is a little concern that there are a few of us, but we can see that everything is done for our safety above all. Production, we will see later," says Pierre , bodywork worker.

And yet, some are already worried about the delay in the production of vehicles. "If it was up to me, I would have started before. Already financially, it's good neither for us, nor for the employer, nor for anyone. So yes, we have to restart," says Grégory, chief of 'team.

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Only about fifty vehicles will leave the chains daily by the end of the week, but the return to full production capacity of the site will probably not be made before the course of the summer.