The Vicenza-based company closed 2020 with a consolidated turnover of €70 million and is now looking to the future with "an ambitious and practical development plan".
The shareholders’ meeting confirmed Riccardo Ferretto as Chairman and appointed Otello Dalla Rosa new director and General Manager.
There is the past, with 2020 showing a €70 million turnover despite the COVID emergency; there is the present, with the new vertical storage system achieving excellent results on the Italian and foreign markets; but above all there is the future, with the return of Otello Dalla Rosa in the role of General Manager and a challenging industrial plan focused on the development and growth of automatic systems. Following yesterday's shareholders' meeting, the Ferretto Group is looking ahead and outlining the route to recapture the growth the Covid crisis has slowed down. The Group aims to confirm its position as one of the top Italian manufacturers of storage and material handling systems. In addition to the appointment of the new Board of Directors - with the confirmation of Riccardo Ferretto as Chairman and CEO, Umberto Ferretto as Vice-Chairman, and the return of Otello Dalla Rosa as Director and General Manager - the shareholders' meeting approved last year's financial statements.
The 2021-2025 industrial plan defines the guidelines for the growth of automatic systems, software development, and integrated solutions.
Here are CEO Riccardo Ferretto’s remarks: “I trust that this meeting will symbolically end a demanding period and begin a new season. In a difficult general context, not only have we held our position, but we have also found the strength to chart the course for the future. The industrial plan that we will approve faces tomorrow's challenges with courage and is based on the pragmatism and solidity that are part of the company's history. It is a plan that we face with a significant corporate reorganization and the notable return of Dalla Rosa, with the continuous commitment of the Ferretto family, and with the awareness of being able to count on an extraordinary team, which has confirmed its value and its loyalty to the company in this last year".
The push towards automation. With the closure of the 2020 financial year and the approval of the financial statements that show a consolidated turnover of €70 million, a positive EBITDA of over €2 million, and a significant increase in equity, our view now shifts to the future.
The 2021-2025 industrial plan will be based on the development and growth of automatic systems, including the new series of vertical storage systems launched a few months ago, which confirms the Group's vision and their aim to provide complete and integrated solutions for all storage systems.
Specifically, the plan envisages significant investments in Research & Development and new production technologies for a total amount of approximately €15 million to support growth and a change in the mix of products offered on the market. Another novelty for the coming years is the development of an innovative software platform, an evolution of the current WMS system, based on new technologies and the integration of new features, starting with IoT systems and artificial intelligence algorithms. Thus, the Ferretto Group will push decisively toward automation, also in line with the development trends of the sector which in Europe will continue to grow in the coming years at rates higher than GDP growth, thanks to the resources of the Recovery Plan and the drive towards Industry 4.0.
“This industrial plan – notes Otello Dalla Rosa – is fully supported by the shareholders and is the challenge underlying my return to the Ferretto Group. It is a plan focused on development and growth, with a strong focus on the efficiency of processes. We have an extremely competitive and interesting range of products, starting with the new Vertimag, the vertical storage system, in addition to all the other integrated automatic storage solutions that meet the needs of companies in the most diverse sectors. We are restarting from here to further improve our solutions, including the services we provide to our partners. Significant investments and the enhancement of human resources are increasingly decisive factors able to make the difference in creating value for the customer".
The importance of human resources. The industrial plan envisages the incorporation of highly skilled professionals in the mechanical, electronic and IT fields. These new resources, which will be added as early as the second half of 2021, will affect especially the Vicenza plant - where the production of vertical storage systems is expected to increase - and also the San Polo d'Enza (Reggio Emilia) plant, which will remain the center for automation, software and services. In addition to these two production sites, the offices in Borgo San Dalmazzo (Cuneo) and Turin, as well as the production plants in Bosnia and India for the metalworking part and the production of industrial shelving, will remain operational.
The new Board of Directors. In addition to the approval of the financial statements and the presentation of the industrial plan, yesterday the Shareholders' meeting appointed the new Board of Directors and the Board of Statutory Auditors. The members of the new BoD are Riccardo Ferretto, Umberto Ferretto, Paola Ferretto, Otello Dalla Rosa, and Mattia Solinas while the members of the new Board of Statutory Auditors are Antonio Zaccaria (Chairman) and the new auditors Giovanni Sandrini and Maurizio Campana.
