Three decades of innovation: Celebrating Cablotech’s 30th anniversary

30 years… if I think about it, I find it hard to realize it: an important goal achieved with a lot of commitment and sacrifice, but also with strong professional and personal satisfaction. A story of Italian entrepreneurship and passion, which is intertwined with that of my family and the territory in which we were born and in which we are still rooted and recognize ourselves today. Trying to retrace these 30 years, there are many moments to mention… starting from the beginning.

The beginning of the adventure

It seems like yesterday: it was November 1993 when one evening my dad brought home the first drawings. I was in my bedroom, I looked at them carefully and, intrigued, I went back and forth from the room, going to ask for explanations… Dad had been working for years at Stern Weber, a company producing dental instruments, and his then employer Baldissera gave him (or rather, gave us) the opportunity to start creating the first nucleus of what has now become Cablotech.
We started working on wiring in the garage at home. At Christmas of that same year the first machines arrived, we bought them from what, over the years, has become a historical supplier of the company and long-term partner.
After the first six months, the garage at home began to be tight and already in mid-1994 we asked Valeria, our neighbor, for her garage to expand our activities. Very soon that too began to be tight, and in 1995 we decided to move to Ozzano dell’ Emilia in what was the first real company warehouse.

Milestones and highlights of growth

With the entry into the warehouse and the workload increasing, 1995 was also the year in which my father left his previous job to dedicate himself full time to the family business, and we made the first staff hires. I am proud to say that our first and historic employee Fiorella and the first two girls hired Gianna and Elena are still with us today, 30 years later.
1995 was also the year we began to expand our range and clientele. One customer in particular, Mr. Biagi, gave us the opportunity to make the first real “jump” forward. And I must say that we did it successfully: just think that already in 1996 we returned to Osteria Grande, a hamlet of Castel S. Pietro Terme, this time not in the home garage but in a larger warehouse than the one in Ozzano.
The relationship with this first customer has continued over the years, the partnership has strengthened to the joy and satisfaction on both sides.
From 1996 to 2000 we acquired what over time has become and is our first customer by turnover.
Another milestone of growth was in the summer of 1999, when we decided to take the “big step”: we went from being rented in 600 m² to acquiring the first warehouse of 2,000 m². And so in January 2000 we settled in what is still our headquarters, in Via Umbria 6 in Osteria Grande. An investment that proved to be positive, since the years from 2000 to 2008 were of great growth both from the point of view of turnover and from that of investments.

Overcoming obstacles

Even Cablotech has not been exempt from the market uncertainties and major economic crises that have characterized the past decades. From 2008 to 2012 in particular, with the subprime mortgage crisis, a period of recession was triggered, to which we however responded with positivity and continued to invest. Instead of “pulling the oars in the boat” we thought about possible new market outlets and about creating business opportunities, even outside national borders, and it was precisely in 2012 that we participated in the first international fair, the Swisstech in Basel. Thanks to this approach to the market, things changed for the better at the end of 2012: work began to grow again and in those years we purchased another 1,000 m² of warehouse.
We didn’t stop, on the contrary: with a view to continuous growth between 2012 and 2015 we laid the foundations for the technical office. I still remember the first CAD which allowed us to introduce new services and to support customers more and more closely, improving and optimizing our commercial proposals.

Challenges and important awards

As the years passed, the needs changed, the complexity increased, and between 2016 and 2017 we registered the company logo in Italy.
At the same time, investments in suitable workplaces and cutting-edge equipment never stopped; by working well with a continuous growth trend, we started to be “tight” again.
The warehouse that had been previously purchased needed maintenance, but we didn’t want to do a “simple renovation”, we wanted the spaces to be designed and conceived to best meet the needs of the company and the people who worked there. At the end of 2018 we then commissioned a consulting firm to redesign the production layout of both warehouses.
It was an immense job, but after 12 months of planning at the end of 2019 the final project was drafted.
The real challenge, also won, was to carry out the renovation of the company headquarters without interrupting production, the management of orders without affecting customer satisfaction, always in the first place. It was not easy: we renovated 400 m² at a time, we moved the production areas 4 times to allow the work to continue, we remade floors, light, data and air systems.
A great satisfaction was to respect the timetable, because within 12 months we completed the work. But looking at the operation after 4 years, I can say that the greatest joy came later, in fact, it still comes every day, when customers, consultants, suppliers, partners and collaborators come to visit our company and realize how “human scale” it is and designed to be a productive and positive environment.

Looking to the future

The restructuring of our company warehouse has also radically changed the way we work, orienting it in a modern and digital key, laying the foundations of what will be the future of Cablotech. For example, we initially introduced the first two automatic warehouses, which today have already become five, located between the two production areas. As Valter would say: “We like to cycle”. And in fact between 2021 and 2022 we worked to restyle the corporate identity, equipping ourselves with a new logo and a new website, essential to make ourselves known to customers and potential customers, throughout Italy and beyond. A new layout, of course, to present traditional values and skills. We have also structured ourselves at a corporate governance level, adopting the 231 organizational model to better define the corporate structure and the management of sensitive processes. And here we are at the end of 2022, when we decided to implement a MRP (Material Requirements Planning) system to manage through software the acquisition plans of the materials necessary to meet production plans and customer demand. Personally, it is a choice that I remember with transport and affection because, just 12 months ago, it turned out to be the last decision made together with my father. In about 10 months we were able to make the switch and I have to say that the results are visible, concrete, tangible! This not only “technical”, but also cultural step in the company has involved a lot of effort, and for this I thank everyone. It was another piece of a path of modernization and digitalization, of a “revolution” that began over 4 years ago… which does not stop and, indeed, increasingly affects all spheres of safety, environment and quality, contributing to improving our daily way of operating.

Thank you

30 years is not a short time, it is a good slice of working life between ups and downs, goals achieved and a long way to go together… maintaining a balance is not always easy, but I believe that Cablotech has succeeded and the goal is to continue growing in a positive mood for all the time we will spend together.
A few months before celebrating the company’s thirtieth year of activity, my father Valter embarked on another journey: if we are here today to celebrate this important milestone, we owe it to him, to his determination, to his somewhat gruff manner in which he has guided me over the years. That is why, day after day, we put more and more effort into carrying on that entrepreneurial journey started by him 30 years ago. I took up the baton and the role of General Manager from him, welcoming the challenges that will come with the awareness that all together we will carry them forward in the best possible way, trying to never take anything for granted.
I therefore thank my parents, Dad’s will and determination, his attachment to the company and the attention he had for this thirty-year anniversary. I think he could be proud of us all…
I strongly thank my brother Mirko for the support of these months and for the time he will dedicate to me in the near future. I thank everyone, starting from the people who are in the company with us every day for the commitment they have always shown. In recent months, after Valter’s passing, the desire to continue as best as possible and the closeness shown to the whole family has been palpable.
I thank suppliers, partners and collaborators for the affection and esteem shown for their sensitivity towards us.

In these first thirty years of dedication, passion and innovation, we have established ourselves as a point of reference in our sector. We look to the future with the determination of those who know that every goal achieved is just a new starting point. Together, with commitment and sharing challenges and achievements, we will continue to build a successful tomorrow.
Because the history of Cablotech has yet to be written.

– Massimiliano Golfieri