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CONSIGN - Effects of Covid-19 on reliability Of National Supply In a Global Nexus

  • Funded by The Research Council of Norway (RCN)
  • Total publications:0 publications

Grant number: 316533

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Key facts

  • Disease

    COVID-19

  • Start & end year

    2020
    2022

  • Known Financial Commitments (USD)

    $487,200

  • Funder

    The Research Council of Norway (RCN)

  • Principal Investigator

    Inger Beate Hovi

  • Research Location

    Norway

  • Lead Research Institution

    Miljøinstitutter

  • Research Priority Alignment

    N/A

  • Research Category

    Secondary impacts of disease, response & control measures

  • Research Subcategory

    Economic impacts

  • Special Interest Tags

    N/A

  • Study Type

    Non-Clinical

  • Clinical Trial Details

    N/A

  • Broad Policy Alignment

    Pending

  • Age Group

    Not Applicable

  • Vulnerable Population

    Not applicable

  • Occupations of Interest

    Not applicable

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to major changes and disruptions for Norwegian business and industry, not in the least for freight transport. With CONSIGN, ramifications of the current crisis will be studied through three veins: 1) analysis of real-time and time-series data from fleet management systems for a large sample of trucks; 2) screening of changes in economic activity in different sectors based on detailed shipment data from the three largest freight forwarders in Norway, and 3) in-depth case studies among important actors within Norwegian transport and supply chains. Combined, this yields insights into economic and cost impacts of disruptions on Norwegian freight transport and transport-dependent industries in the economy as a whole, reliability of supply for the Norwegian society and approaches to tackle transport and supply chain challenges. CONSIGN will also study effects of public support measures, by assessing the timing of changes in activity levels against the timing of policy measures and restrictions. Further, CONSIGN will assess whether changes are characterized by short-term shocks, or stabilize at new levels. The latter can provide insights into response time and adaptability for firms and public authorities. Through collaboration with ten major actors from industry, CONSIGN is strongly anchored with practice. This ensures relevant and real life insights, and facilitates very comprehensive analyses that cover a large share of the Norwegian economy and supply chains across a broad range of industries, all transport modes, and with a high level of detail both in geography and time. Due to the abruptness of disruptions and their nature, the corona situation allows for a unique stress test of the robustness of supply chains for Norwegian society and business, and understanding the veins through which the current situation affects transport and reliability of supply is crucial for the design of effective political responses and policy measures.