Industrial platforms
Industrial management of all other product categories for the bathroom space has been developed to be controlled by the industrial platform system. Different market demands can be met while still minimizing costs, thanks to the use of standard technical components and management policies throughout the process by multidisciplinary teams under a single technical management team. The platform system allows components common to some products to be manufactured at strategic locations for subsequent assembly at facilities located closer to the markets.
Actions undertaken stem from our strategy aimed at cost and investment control, productivity improvement and catering to the needs in local markets
The Group has consolidated its methodology for interdepartmental work and interaction, and in 2013 the industrial platform system has moved to create the new shower screen platform — thus enhancing the current four platforms (Faucets, Furniture, Acrylics and RIS) — as well as to launch new facilities and develop new business solutions. This has led to increased market share in strategic regions as new product categories are launched or new business opportunities are identified.
The Faucet platform has seen remarkable progress in all business areas in 2013. In product development we have expanded the S30 and S35 low-cost solutions into new markets, already present in 13 countries, and the S45 line has been developed for launch in 2014. In the Shower category, our mid-range (Sensum Round and Sensum Square) has been broadened and a complete range of shower heads has been designed. Most noteworthy, however, is the creation of the Box universal built-in dock, the versatility of which makes it compatible with the Group’s full range of fitted bathroom faucets. In terms of technological innovation, progress has been made in developing new products for the thermostatic, electronic and mixer faucet platforms, as well as in automating sanding and polishing processes at the Cantanhede (Portugal) and Suzhou (China) plants. The industrial map of the platform has expanded with the December commissioning of a new plant in Brazil, officially opened in April 2014, a new assembly facility in Russia (Novocheboksary) for the Roca and Jika brands and the introduction of a new series in the Czech Republic (Znojmo) assembly facility. Following this expansion, the Group now has seven full-cycle faucet factories and three assembly facilities.
Expanding to Brazil is also one of the strategic objectives of the Furniture platform, a department that worked on designing a new plant in Jundiaí — opened in the first quarter of 2014 —approving local suppliers and designing specific bathroom furniture collections for this market. Global furniture sales in 2013 have grown by 10%, thanks to an enhanced product mix in Russia and China — the two largest markets in terms of volume — and significant increases in France, UK, Czech Republic and Morocco. Product highlights include the launch of the Debba series and development of the Heima and Joly series for the Roca brand and new collections for local brands Jika and Celite.
The Shower Screen platform was formed in 2013 to take full advantage of significant prospects for growth in markets such as China and for improvement in several European countries. The platform has two of its own manufacturing factories: the plant in Nanhai (China) focuses on large-volume production and the Caldes de Montbui (Spain) plant is more geared toward custom production. The product lines developed in 2013 include Fusion-N, Ura and Cosmo.
The Acrylics platform has developed a resin treatment process (RTM, Resin Transfer Molding ) which greatly streamlines the production methods. This system was originally implemented at the Poland factory.
Lastly, key developments in the Roca Installation Systems (RIS) platform include a new family of low-cost recessed tanks, mainly geared toward local brands. The new PL5 and PL9 push plates broaden the possibilities for bathroom space customization. As far as our expansion to new markets, we have started to sell recessed tanks in Russia and countries of the former Soviet Union while strengthening sales in North Africa and the Middle East.