Innovation in the wake of safety. These words enclose the core of the Giovenzana Group philosophy. The Lombard company is renown at international level and has now achieved great managerial capabilities with over 60 years
of history. Today it is led by its third entrepreneurial generation.
Over the decades, Giovenzana has focused its growth on market analysis and diversification of production, by investing in technology and counting on its staff commitment and collaboration.
Giovenzana products, now exporting to all over the world, are a reference for handling, automation, lifting, maintenance, control and checking operations of mobile machines.
Study, design and production merge into a unique goal in order to fully meet industrial needs. The company history began immediately after the war and it is the brainchild of Carlo and Giulio Giovenzana.
The company, originally dealing with electrical windings, later expanded its production and increased the staff levels until 1952 with the foundation of the Carlo Giovenzana company. In those years, the production was mainly craftsman’s manufacture. Until 1957, the company continued its growth in Milan at its historic headquarters in via Padova, and then moved to Olgiate Molgora and then to S. Maria Hoè, in the province of Lecco. Here, Giovenzana has acquired the size and structure of a true industrial company. In the 80’s it becomes an internationally renowned brand.
Today Giovenzana, in addition to the original pavilion of S. Maria Hoè, has branch offices in Amsterdam, Moscow, Mumbai and Sao Paulo, as well as offices in Dubai. But what are the prospects of this Italian excellence arising from the 2017 turnover? We talk about this with Massimo Giovenzana, general manager of the group.

Mr Giovenzana, what could you say about your company at the end of 2017,
which has certainly been a positive year for the global economy, but at the same time worrying from a political point of view?
This year results mirror our constant commitment aimed at developing technology and quality.
This development is necessary in an extremely demanding market sector, which is at the same time overwhelmed by products of rather questionable quality. Our main focus is on safety in all possible ways: towards the market, the operator
and the end user. Our moral obligation is to offer the operator the chance to act as quickly as possible to avoid any danger, by using the most advanced technology.

How did you develop your external relations and what percentage of your turnover does come from foreign countries?
In 2018, we have the world before us. Italy is now only a region of Europe and our philosophy is to try to achieve every possible market. At present, at least 65% of our production is targeted at foreign countries and the remainder is sold domestically.

Which are the countries whose trade relations gave you the most and in which famous buildings have you installed your products?
I start from the second part of the question and show you one of our company brochures. As you can see, the Eiffel Tower
and the Dubai Burj Khalifa are on the cover. Both are provided with our safety products and represent the classic and the modern, past and future. This is our business card. While if you ask me which are our most fertile markets, I say that we look at future markets. If this crazy war should come to an end, Syria and Libya would be the countries with the greatest chances of reconstruction.

Can you give me your general point of view on Augsburg Fair and the results for your company?
Augsburg has become, year after year, a reference point for the lift market and this edition did not disappoint our
expectations. Unfortunately, the increase in the number of exhibitors also led to a large number of mediocre products:
many are copied, but without the constant reference to safety. Neither technology study nor research, and therefore the sector suffers and the quality level drops. However, Augsburg is always an important event but I would not underestimate the growth of the Istanbul Fair, especially now that there are several local manufacturers.

How do you differentiate your products from the competition and what are your strengths?
Just two words: development and engineering. The development of increasingly sophisticated products and the engineering research to find new useful safety solutions. Nonetheless, our mission is the one that should always be kept in mind by any entrepreneur: there is always room for improvement and we shall always aim at improving our existing products.

Are you designing any innovative product that could bring real safety benefits to operators?
Sure! Our development department never stops. We are testing new products, but these too are not a milestone, just a stage. The keystone must always be to improve safety and all our efforts in research, logistics and marketing must go
in that direction.

The new pavilion project Giovenzana is completing at the headquarters of S. Maria Hoè and goes exactly in this direction and it should be ready by March 2018. It will be the flagship of the Lombard factory: fully automated, over 1,300 square metres of surface area, 10 metres high and 2,600 pallets expected. The pavilion is annexed the two currently existing buildings, with a 100-seat congress centre at the top.