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Idrobase nowadays
Our hystory
Idrobase Srl
was founded in 1986. This resulted from the merger of the individual
concerns of Bruno Ferrarese, who owned a commercial business selling
high pressure washers, and Bruno Gazzignato, whose company dealt with
their repair. As a direct consequence of the merger, the new company
was given storehouses and service vans.
The new business truly started when it purchased the branch of
a large foreign company. Initially, the areas in which Idrobase Srl
operated were Padova, Venice and Rovigo.
Although the company set up remained unchanged, the business
gradually increased its turnover and continuously set new and more
ambitious goals for its development.
[Our premises]
Idrobase has developed its role as distributor
and manufacturer of high pressure washers, spare parts, components and
vapour apparatus. Yesterday’s clients were end users of its equipment,
whereas today they are manufacturers and distributors. Areas of
operation gradually increased, and now the company has areas of
interest throughout the world.
The company mission
Since its inception, the Idrobase mission has literally been: “we are changing the rules of the high pressure washer market”.
Considering the fact that Idrobase is a small company operating in a
market of giants, this affirmation may to most seem heavy handed and
foolish. The facts and figures reported below prove, however, that at
times, having a forward and innovative outlook can move you from being
the follower to the one being followed, irrespective of the size of
your company.
Idrobase Srl
was founded in 1986
Idrobase produces innovative, professional high
pressure washers. In our company we take for granted that relationship
between quality/price is the better we can get. We focus our attention
on aspects such as: the reliability in time, handy products easy to
operate, reduction of maintenance, health and comfort of the operator
of our high pressure washers, reduction of washing times, practicalness
of maintenance, environmental impact during and after the life of
product, resourses conservation.
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Idrobase manufactures high pressure washers (machines which works with
water at high pressure: 100-300 bar, with hot or cold water).
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Our products and solutions are adopted by all those businesses that
need to wash their apparatus,equipment, surfaces etc... Such users
include: shipyards, food industries, public bodies, farms, livestock
farmers, engineering industries, haulage companies etc...
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Idrotech Srl
was founded in 1995
Idrotech was the natural development of the industrial
division of Idrobase. In order to meet the specific needs of some
customers, even more accurately, a new company was set up. Idrotech’s
structure is the same as that of Idrobase. Idrotech produce fog systems
for humidification, dust suppression, disinfection and cooling. Our
mission is “one client one market”, or, customized solutions.
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Idrotech manufactures Fog systems: a pump, pressurized water at 60÷120
bar, and spray atomized water into the air through nozzles.
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Our customers are livestock farmers (cooling and disinfection), civic
amenity sites and manufacturers which produce odorous smells as a side
effect of production (odour neutralization), mines, industrial yards
(dust suppression), external public environments (cooling), etc...
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Club dei Riparatori
was founded in 1997
This division of Idrobase manufacture spare parts and
components for repairing high pressure washers. Club dei Riparatori has
broken up the monopoly of the manufacturers in the area of spare parts
for high pressure washers. Today, the customer can choose whether to
buy from the manufacturer, or from Club dei Riparatori. Doing so,
prices and delivery times are kept and the quality of repairs are
improved. Our mission is: “to provide all that is necessary for the repair of any kind of high pressure washer in the world”.
Club dei Riparatori manufactures spare parts and components for high pressure washers.
Our customers are manufacturers and repairers of such products.
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HydroEast
was founded in 2004
This is a daughter company of Idrobase with capital
partners by Idrobase. In China it makes components to manufacture high
pressure washers, 35% of which ends up in the United States market, 35%
in China and 30% imported into Italy by Idrobase. Of this 30%, 40% is
used to make Idrobase high pressure washers and Idrotech fog systems.
The remaining 60% is resold by Club dei Riparatori to repairers
throughout the world. A minor detail: we have NOT transferred
production, or part of it, to China. There we have set up a new
concern, supporting know-how, planning and distribution in Italy.
HydroEast manufacturers components for high pressure washers.
HydroEast customers are manufacturers and distributors of high pressure washers.
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Perfect Cool
was founded in 2005
In 2005 we entered Perfect Cool’s capital. Perfect Cool
was a distributor of fogging systems: we acquired skills, distribution,
know-how, knowledge of the market in the hottest countries, where we
wish to build on the distribution of one of our emerging products:
fogging systems for public sector.
We transform hottest days into pleasure occasions.
Some of the applications of our products are: houses, gardens, hotels, restaurants, bars, pubs, swimming pools etc.
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Team game
Idrobase, Idrotech, Club dei Riparatori, HydroEast,
Perfect Cool: five businesses, each working in a specific area.
Together they form a complete solution in the market for high pressure
washers, complementing and supporting each other.
Organization
All five businesses have their headquarters in the one
building in Borgoricco, Padova. Production, managing deliveries, supply
of stock, research into new products, research and development and
administration are common values. Sales and marketing are carried out
separately. Each of the four businesses has its own offices and
dedicated staff, its own marketing support and its own internet site.
The Team
We prefer to develop our staff, investing in them by
taking on young people, fresh from university or school. We pass the
firm’s objectives and the more delicate tasks on to them. For this
reason, new staff are employed directly by the managers concerned. The
same people who must pass on to the new employees the firm’s
objectives, methods and procedures, and share with them the daily
workload.
The firm’s motto, which encourages and motivates the staff is
written on a piece of paper on the wall of the “solutions area” office
and reads: “the worst crime of all is not failing, it is not trying”
In this way we have formed a motivated and cohesive group of people
which supports one another and self improves day after day. This is why
after a few years of development, our staff are able to successfully
take on roles involving considerable responsibility.
The sales manager is 34 years old, her colleague in 32, the
purchasing manager is 34, the storehouse manager is 30, while the
internet support manager is 39.
Reasons for success
When Idrobase advertises its products on the world
market, no intermediaries are used. Sales agents, area managers,
inspectors, (normally variable cost) are substituted by Idrobase’s own
staff (fix cost). In the world of high pressure washers, where the
agents are middle aged men with a substantial technical knowledge of
the product, we rely on a young Team which looks upon the female
component ( six female language graduates, with no specific technical
training).
Compared with tradition, this female component is the most
different. Throughout the world, we are the only company in our field
that has handed distribution over entirely to women. What is
interesting is that our clients, whom are mostly men, describe this
service as better than that provided by the traditional male seller of
technical products.
To support our sales effort, we have five business to business e-commerce sites (http://www.idrobase.com,
http://www.sparesclub.com,
http://www.idrotech.com,
http://www.perfectcool.it
and
http://hydroeast.cn) and a website giving general information on managing, repairing, and manufacturing our machines (http://www.allforclean.com). Our dealers are on our websites.
Contact with our most important customers and suppliers is managed through one-2-one videoconference.
30% of our customers pay by credit card, making us the only business in
our field in Europe which uses this effective method to manage payments
coming from abroad. Payment by this method is faster and more secure
than the standard credit letter or up front payment by bank transfer.
Marketing and research into new products, markets and
sub-suppliers is based on the systematic use of non invasive
telemarketing. It is through telemarketing that we continuously conduct
studies in order to monitor changes and trends in the market. This also
allows us to verify on a regular basis the level of satisfaction of our
customers and how attractive our old and new products and solutions
are.
Zoning (Italian and foreign headquaters and branches)
Idrobase, its
Club dei Riparatori
division,
Idrotech
and
Perfect Cool
are situated in a new industrial building of around 2.000 square meters, with offices 500 square meters together in length.
Hydroeast
in China is situated in a rented building of around 400 square meters
in size in the city of Xinchang, around 400 km south of Shanghai.
Idrobase’s representative office is open since June 2006 in a brand new building in Shanghai’s city centre.
Accounts / turnover
Turnover, and more importantly company performance, reflect the company’s health.
The total turnover of 2007 is around 6 millions euros.
Export markets: products/services
We export to more than 50 developed and developing
countries throughout the world, from China to the USA and from Norway
to Argentina.
Share of exports as a percentage of total production
70%
Distribution strategy
The key to success, in our opinion, is reinforcing our
brand name, distributing our products in far away countries through
sales outlets directly controlled by us. By using our marketing and
strategic supports, these sales outlets will propose our products and
solutions to the customer (manufacturers, dealers, repairers of high
pressure washers and fogging systems). Working alone in various
countries however is difficult, which is why we have decided to invest
in the capital stock of other companies. We have joined in consortium
with both manufacturers and distributors, joining forces with other
players in the market.
Consortium
Idrobase is a member of two consortiums. These consortiums of small and medium sized entrepreneurs are:
Italian Cleaning Manufacturers Team,
a consortium founded in 2004 and which is composed of 9 manufacturers
of industrial cleaning equipment. The firms are not in competition with
one another and the aim of the consortium is to promote the products of
its members in developing countries.
SAPI, a consortium founded in 2005 and which is composed of 10
Italian companies which aim to market the Made in Italy in China. The
opening of the first consortium office took place last June in
Shanghai.
Positive factors
Our way of approaching the market allows us:
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to sell our products / solutions at a price which is on average10-25% lower than our competitors’ products
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to supply our customers with products and solutions which are at least as high quality as our strongest competitors’
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to send out 95% of orders within 3 days from the date the order was placed
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to enter the market with new products and
solutions 6 months to 2 years in advance of our competitors and
therefore to provide a winning solution in the market place.
Idrobase Srl
Via dell’Industria, 25
35010 Borgoricco (PD)
ITALY
P.IVA 02030820282
Tel. 0039 049 9335903 r.a.
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