Impresa Pizzarotti & C. S.p.A has undergone a process of ongoing evolution in the construction industry for more than a century, driven by the potential in projects which have led to the Company’s successful establishment abroad.
ANTICIPATING CUSTOMER DEMANDS
Impresa Pizzarotti C. S.p.A has been privy to many significant projects over the years, establishing itself as a prominent construction company, held in high esteem by both those in the industry and the Company’s clients. Perhaps one of the most prominent of these projects was related to the construction of the high-speed railway lines from Milano to Bologna and Treviglio to Brescia.
This project changed the lives of many Italian citizens and together with other Italian companies, Impresa Pizzarotti completed the project to an incredibly high standard.
“During the project, we were able to use interesting and innovative systems for the construction of more than 10 kilometres of railway viaducts and beyond,” explains Francesco Aguglia, Project Director at Impresa Pizzarotti. “This solved the problem to the numerous interferences for densely populated territories, while also allowing for optimal landscaping and environmental integration and permeability of the highly relevant infrastructure.”
With some of the more challenging overhangs that the Company came up against – particularly in terms of length – the solution had to be integrated in a similar manner, designed with hyperstatic solutions which were poured on site.
The Company was founded in 1910, following the constitution of an artisan firm named Gino Pizzarotti, and having built upon this, more than a century later Impresa Pizzarotti stands out as a truly modern organisation.
“It was between the 70s and 80s that we began to gain international acclaim in foreign markets, most definitely a crucial step towards the Company’s success,” adds Aguglia. “Our work on post-earthquake reconstruction was particularly significant for the Company’s development; it represented the core relationship that could at times be undervalued, between construction companies and the precast division.”
The past seven years has seen prominent growth for the Company’s business abroad, with the opening of several divisions and affiliate companies. The Company very wisely consolidated its position in countries it already had a presence in, with new projects being acquired in the United States, Russia, Poland, Moldova, Montenegro, Kuwait, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Cameroon, Peru and Australia, and in the next few years the Group will reach 3,000 employees.
ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY
It is one of the fundamental philosophies of the Company to maintain both a low and concrete profile, therefore simply being able to focus on delivering on its projects in time and subsequently to a high standard of quality and economic sustainability.
Aguglia continues: “We have found the world of construction needs to speak through work, rather than through words; unfortunately, very often we have found words have appeared to take on a greater importance than work for other construction companies.”
In order to support its work, the Company has always focused on both technology and IT innovation, researching and investing in the processes that will improve conditions for employees in general. Alongside this, particular attention is also paid to the safety and environmental sustainability of its own site, proudly boasting an index of injuries far below the industry average.
“At the Company our aim and policy is to focus on the needs of our customers, as well as providing transparency in all interactions with financial operators, local authorities and of course our employees,” affirms Aguglia. “We are able to provide stakeholders with more than 100 years of expertise, built upon reliability and commitment to the industry.”
ADVANCED ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS
In more recent years, the Company has been focused on a persistent search for advanced technology solutions that will enable growth and modernisation of the production processes Impresa Pizzarotti is renowned for.
Due to this, a strong engineering structure is now in place, managing the technical choices for the realisation of the works in order to achieve the best possible technical results, alongside the best economic results for sustainability of the projects.
“Our administrative processes are constantly updated via dedicated procedures that employ the use of custom software,” describes Aguglia. “This allows for a very fast data transfer between offices that are thousands of miles apart, therefore allowing for smoother communications between colleagues located in different places and enabling successful interaction and collaboration.”
Supporting this software is of course a dedicated team of employees, therefore it has become pivotal to pay attention to training processes, across technical, behavioural and management aspects. Training will always have a specific focus and for 2016 it was to hone specific skills to fit corporate requirements, as well as cross-sectoral opportunities that place a particular emphasis on specific and highly specialised knowledge.
“We have always allowed for significant resources when it comes to staff training and moreover, as part of our HR development policy, the Company provides internal academies about specific technical topics, which promote organisational skills within the Impresa Pizzarotti,” explains Aguglia. “From the perspective of individual development, training programmes have been introduced that are dedicated to team working.
“In that regard, the volunteering programme is experienced in collaboration with local associations operating within the social sector to involve in staff and sharing and inclusion projects.”
ATTENTION TO DETAIL
One of the major differences between Impresa Pizzarotti and its competitors is most definitely the close attention paid to the achievement of a result, and this is reflected in a control and the widespread programming of projects, ensuring nothing is forgotten.
“Our aim here is to complete these projects in the allotted time, specifically conforming to the budget and meeting high quality standards,” states Aguglia. “In order to successfully sustain these standards, the aforementioned will often lead to double checks on the activities of every individual employee, therefore minimising the possibility of errors and with that a loss of time that could have a negative impact of the timing of the project.”
With such attention to detail, it is no wonder that Impresa Pizzarotti has enjoyed more than a century of successes in the construction industry.
Aguglia adds: “I believe that our continued success is primarily through the continuity of the Pizzarotti family and the way it enables the delivery of a more solid and competitive place in the market, primarily achieved through the systematic investment of profits produced within the Company.”
That factor has ensured that even throughout some very intense periods of crisis in the Italian and international economies, the Company has been able to successfully overcome it.
“Moving forward, it would be exciting to see our Company unlock a large portfolio of work, some of which is already available and currently stationary due to lengthy administrative and bureaucratic procedures and a lack of funding,” concludes Aguglia. “Similarly it would be great for us to be able to develop our business activities – particularly in the areas where the Company has recently started its business experience – in areas such as the service sector. It is this kind of diversification we are particularly interested in and hope that with time it will provide us and our clients with a greater level of stability.”
