Fiege is supporting the car shuttle service to the vaccination centre of the Steinfurt district. The facility at Münster/Osnabrück Airport (FMO), which is only a stone’s throw away from the headquarters of the logistics service provider, opened its doors at the start of the week. However, many of the approximately 27,000 people initially entitled to vaccinations are unable to reach the vaccination centre by themselves. The severe onset of winter in the Münsterland region is also complicating the situation. Therefore, as part of a company volunteer campaign, Fiege employees are offering a shuttle service to and from the centre using company vehicles.
“A lot of the people over 80 years of age in the Steinfurt district who are entitled to be vaccinated have only limited mobility and therefore depend on assistance,” says Jens Fiege, CEO of the Fiege Group, who runs the company together with his cousin Felix Fiege. That is why approximately 90 volunteers are currently supporting the car shuttle service to FMO. From Monday to Friday and, if need be, also at weekends, staff members are on the road in company vehicles, picking the people up at home in good time and returning them safely afterwards. For Jens Fiege, this is a matter of course: “Our family business has been deeply rooted in the region for many years, which is why we want to give something back to the people living here. We are glad we can contribute our resources to the pandemic response in our home area.” The response within the company has been huge: “Colleagues from various career levels across divisions have declared their willingness to take part – from trainees to board members,” Fiege says.
The current weather conditions made the situation even more difficult. Alexander Neudorf, Director Human Resources at Fiege, explains: “The start of the vaccination drive was literally overwhelmed by the huge snowfall, so we stepped up our car services at short notice to ensure that as many people as possible could keep their vaccination appointment.” This is not only important to protect vulnerable groups of people, but also because the vaccine sometimes has a short shelf life.
“On the round trips, we enjoy a lot of rewarding conversations and get a lot of gratitude from our passengers,” Alexander Neudorf reports. However, because vaccine deliveries are difficult to calculate, they can often only be announced at short notice. “Of course, we’re happy to release our colleagues from their work for this. Given the current situation, other appointments can wait,” Neudorf says. To protect themselves from coronavirus, drivers as well as people entitled to the vaccine and the people accompanying them wear FFP2 masks during the journeys.
District fire chief Raphael-Ralph Meier, contact person for the transfer coordination of the Steinfurt district, was also satisfied: “On account of the weather conditions, in addition to the many daily challenges at the vaccination centre we had to find and implement a solution in the interests of the elderly at short notice. Together with our partner Fiege, we turned the idea into a viable concept within a few hours. A total of around 80 additional trips were organised and carried out at the start of the week. So on Monday, when the vaccination centre opened its doors, despite the adverse traffic conditions, about 90% of the people registered were on site and could be vaccinated. Afterwards, we received a lot of praise for this car service, which I’m happy to pass on – along with a big thank-you – to the Fiege company, too.”
