System reports 20% growth

System is continuing to grow. Following the 12% upturn of 2013, the Fiorano-based group led by Franco Stefani is set to close 2014 with 20% growth in turnover to around 380 million euros and has already received orders for the next 6 months, giving it a clear idea of how 2015 will unfold.

During the customary end-of-year press conference, Franco Stefani discussed the details of these positive results, which are largely attributable to Exports and Research. "We invest on average 10 million euros a year in new projects, working on about ten project a year with the goal of launching two or three onto the market," he said. "We cannot keep innovations hidden away: we must put them forward and be open to feedback and discussion." Amongst projects currently in the pipeline, Stefani mentioned the development of digital decoration solutions in non-ceramic sectors (including glass and wood) and novelties in the field of packaging on demand.

System, a multinational with 30 companies operating in 26 countries worldwide, generates around 80% of its turnover from exports.

The biggest contributions to the rise in turnover in 2014 were made by the ceramic machinery sector (the System group's core business which accounts for more than half of its revenues) and the logistics division, which builds large intralogistic plants for the Food&Beverage sector (CocaCola, Pepsico, Grupo Modelo) and Modula vertical storage systems.

The System Ceramics division has reported outstanding performances in Italy (mainly through the restructuring of existing installations), Spain, Brazil, Egypt, China, the United States, Indonesia, Mexico, Russian Federation and Saudi Arabia. The division has set up new production sites, principally in the Middle and Far East and the Americas, and it has also established a presence in new markets such as Bangladesh.

The guiding principles behind the innovative offerings include cutting production costs, improving the use of raw materials, saving energy, optimising factory space and achieving innovation through mechatronics. These principles underpin the latest technological solutions, such as the Multigecko end-of-line system, the Creadigit digital decorating machine (around 200 units already sold), the constantly evolving GEA mouldless press, and the Diversa revolutionary digital glazing and decoration system unveiled at Tecnargilla 2014, the first unit of which is about to undergo final testing prior to being installed in the Spring at the facility of Ceramica Sant'Agostino.

Stefani believes that one of the reasons for this market success is the ability to offer "more software than hardware", in other words an all-round customer service that includes pre- and after-sales support, custom solutions and training and assistance for customers wherever they are located.

New investments in 2015-2016

On the basis of this year's results, System has already chosen the investments it will make in the two-year period 2015-2016. Following the success of the Modula automatic vertical storage systems (the company division has grown by almost 80% in two years), System will double its production at Salvaterra (Reggio Emilia) by building a new factory alongside the existing facility. The operation will cost 10 million euros and will have the aim of increasing annual output to 2,000 storage systems. Another confirmed investment is the one for the US facility at Lewiston, Maine, where a total of $ 6 million will be spent on machinery for US production of storage systems, to serve the entire American continent from north to south. System is also looking positively to the Far East and is considering the possibility of setting up after-sales support services in Thailand and China for large intralogistic plants designed by the subsidiary System Logistics S.p.A.

New investments in personnel

System took on 25 new employees in 2014 and further investments in personnel are planned for the coming year to accompany the Group's growth. "We plan to hire between 10 and 50 new employees at our headquarters in Fiorano and at the branches in Mexico and the United States," Franco Stefani confirmed. "The profiles we are most interested in are engineers, physicists, chemists, technicians, and agents with technical and language training for the sales department."

"We believe in people because they represent the soul of the company, and above all we believe in young people. We need people with whom we can carry forward our programmes and projects. The capital goods we offer must be designed, built, sold and backed by after-sales support. This is why our primary raw material is our human resources, which we aim to transform into human capital. We are emigrants in our own country. We travel around the world to bring work to Fiorano Modenese and in turn export value in the form of useful capital goods. Behind our complex products are engineers, chemists and physicists, as well as a large number of technicians trained at schools in Modena and Reggio Emilia," added Stefani.

The System Group today has 1,500 employees, of whom 1,000 are employed in the ceramic cluster. The company places great importance on the relationship with its workers and provides continuing professional training at all levels (16,000 hours of training in 18 months), as well as setting up special agreements for employees and pairing newly hired workers with more senior members of staff.

"In the future there will increasingly be a need for occupational profiles focused on communication, capable of exploring the needs of the market and conducting research into changes in consumption patterns. We will need experts in international commerce and professional figures in the field of logistics, a key segment responsible for handling all the goods and products that enter and exit from our factories. The most pressing need is to provide in-service training for teachers to enable them to keep abreast of the latest developments and to update school syllabuses to ensure that students receive adequate training. The world won't wait: we have to realise that the things we learned yesterday will no longer be of any use tomorrow," concluded Franco Stefani.