Riccardo Bergamasco, Ad Ziehl-Abegg Italia
“The outlook is promising, our order books are already full through to end of year. We have planned production for the next 12 months, which is an unusual situation for us. Normally we work to a three-month timeframe”.
This is how Riccardo Bergamasco, Managing Director of the Italian branch of Ziehl-Abegg, a company with global operations in the sectors of ventilation, control and drive technology, sums up the start of 2022.
He adds “2021 was a highly unusual year. The global health emergency never let up; we faced shortages of raw materials along with rising inflation. At the same time, there was an explosion in demand and investments began to flow again. We believe this is down to the strategic vision of sector players”.
Bergamasco: “+14% in 2021, and we are set to continue that growth this year”
“Despite the lockdown in April, 2020 end-of-year financial results were in line with forecasts” points out Bergamasco, “But in 2021 we achieved double-digit growth, reporting turnover of 53 million euro, up 14% on 2020”.
In relation to these results, the MD underlines that three fifths are next-generation energy-efficient fans: “Our customers have expert knowledge of the fruit ripening process” he says, “Today, with the growing demand for exotic fruits like bananas and avocados, it’s vital to ensure that fruit shipped from distant overseas locations reaches its destination at optimum ripeness. Ripening chambers must therefore be equipped with the latest technology, designed to guarantee uniform ripening of fruit, without overlooking another important aspect, which is that of energy consumption. Our fans are designed to allow high-precision, customised control, with various speed settings. In these solutions, our customers find the ideal response to their technical requirements”.
Growing interest in vertical farming
“In addition to fruit ripening, we are noting the market’s growing interest in vertical farming” states Bergamasco, “These, too, are energy-hungry facilities, as farming in enclosed spaces requires light and a controlled environment. Our products are perfect in these facilities too, which represent another opportunity for us”.
“With energy costs at unprecedented levels” concludes Bergamasco “shrewd entrepreneurs are investing in energy saving. We don’t envisage this trend tapering off in 2022, indeed we expect it to continue over the next two years”.
