2016, a new year is starting. Can we draw conclusions about the year that has just ended, Bandera’s achievements and in general your perception of the market?
2015 has been an important year for Bandera. We reached a turnover in excess of €80 million with an estimated growth of 2-4% per year for the biennium 2016-2017. We acquired new customers and experienced significant work volumes: the orders we received so far will ensure a steady workflow for our production department for the first six months of 2016 and beyond.
These results, in line with our expectations, are the fruits of our strong efforts in areas such as the Middle East and Pacific Asia, of the strengthening of our operations structure, as well as of the availability of the House of Extrusion, our newest R&D centre, the essence of our natural attitude towards innovation. Here, our customers can develop solutions tailored to their specific requirements and carry out production tests before extrusion lines are installed in their factories, with unquestionable advantages in terms of time and costs.
Our market sentiment is positive. A 2.8-3% growth is registered at worldwide level, with peak increases of 5-6% in the packaging sector.
What are the products you currently rely on? And the most popular products among professionals of this sector? Why?
Certainly our lines dedicated to the production of PET and agricultural film.
Our customers, and generally the whole sector, recognise our strong and deeply-rooted tradition and power of innovation, which accredit Bandera as a worldwide trendsetter.
The third generation of the Bandera family is now joining the company, with the aim of strengthening business and encouraging the engineering spirit, while remaining faithful to what has always been Bandera’s key to success: a clever synthesis between the tailor-made approach of a craftsman’s business and the presence at international level of a company able to create new markets and new opportunities for its customers worldwide. All this has resulted in a very high degree of customer loyalty.
You are active worldwide, over the five continents, and take part in all main trade shows of this sector. What are the development prospects for your target markets?
We firmly trust in the potential of the Indian market. There, we have a representative office and a service centre to support our customers through all phases of their professional relationship with Bandera. We enjoy a good sales volume in Latin America, especially in Mexico, and we find it very interesting to be active on the North-American market, where customers are excellent buyers thanks, among other things, to the revaluation of the dollar. The Middle East in general, and Saudi Arabia in particular, are also very attractive markets for our business.
As far as trade shows are concerned, our commercial strategy involves the participation of Bandera in all events of this sector, although we concentrate our efforts on Chinaplast and K.
How do you operate on the Russian market, and what are your expectations from Interplastica?
The economic and political situation in Russia is rather critical. Bandera has nevertheless been able to identify a number of interesting deals in 2015, and discussions are being held this year on projects with investors who need to reinforce their business.
The participation in Interplastica is important for us to consolidate our partnership with our sole agent in Russia and in the former USSR republics, that has profitably cooperated with us for more than 5 years.
And what about Italy? How is the Italian market performing, and to what extent is Italy important for you?
The Italian market reacted positively in 2015, demand remained high, the mood was tense but good. After recovering from the crisis of 2009, companies have resumed investment. This offers an interesting point of view and the possibility that this market is still regarded as attractive, considering for example that we hold a market share of 80% in the sector of PET film in Italy.
Speaking about short-term strategies, what are Bandera’s priorities? And your projects for the future?
Continuous search for recycled and biodegradable materials, utmost attention to energy saving, development of packaging weight reduction technologies, implementation of a protocol for the effective management of production lines (OEE, overall equipment effectiveness). These are only some of the projects we have already undertaken and that are currently being developed. And this is the reason why customers appreciate Bandera and its way of doing business.
In addition to all this, we would like to underline that Bandera is not only a manufacturer of machines for plastics extrusion; it also offers top-level engineering and consultancy services, making the excellence of the Italian industrial technology known worldwide.
