From a boy who used to read electronics magazines while his peers bought comic books, to a company that designs sound, video and lighting systems for hotels, spas, companies and universities. In Monte San Pietro, in the Bologna hills, Rokepo turns technology into experience and innovation into customised solutions. For FARE INSIEME, Giampaolo Colletti interviewed Andrea Lobietti, CEO of Rokepo
by Giampaolo Colletti
@gpcolletti
Some company stories do not begin in a garage or in a laboratory. This one, for example, began - who would have thought it? - in a swimming pool and, in fact, underwater. It may seem a paradox and certainly challenging but, to better understand this ingenious intuition that turned into a hi-tech company, we need to go back in time. Quite a long way back. It was the end of the 1970s and Andrea Lobietti was basically just a boy. While many of his peers were buying comic books, he returned home with electronics magazines. He flipped through them, took devices apart and carried out experiments. The passion for technology had accompanied him ever since middle school. But there was also another passion that occupied a great part of his time: competitive swimming. And it is precisely in a swimming pool that something happened that was destined to leave its mark. “Synchronised swimmers followed the rhythm of the music as their trainer hit the edge of the swimming pool with a hammer. I thought it incredible that there was no better way to bring music underwater,” recalls Lobietti. There we have it, from that naive consideration, a piece of research was born. Followed by a prototype. Followed by the first Italian-made underwater speaker. It was not yet not a company, but it was already a way of looking at the world, as is often the case of the Emilian stories we have been telling for some time: detecting a problem and trying to solve it. It is something that would characterise Andrea throughout the years. Born in Bologna in 1965, with a scientific high school diploma and a degree in Electronic Engineering from the University of Bologna, he turned that juvenile curiosity into a profession. In 1996, together with a designer who specialised in electro-acoustics, he founded Rokepo. We find ourselves in Monte San Pietro, a town of ten thousand near the middle-upper basin of the river Lavino in the hills of the Bologna hinterland. A territory that fully represents the soul of Emilia: manufacturing, technical skill and a culture of doing - and, most of all, of doing things together - coupled with an obsessive attention to high quality. This is where a business was born that now designs and sets up integrated sound, video and lighting systems for companies, hotels, spas, universities, public bodies and places of worship.
Company profile. Rokepo was born from the passion for advanced technology, but also grew thanks to a less obvious skill, i.e. that of turning complexity into simplicity. The company does not sell products, it builds experiences. It designs environments where sound, images and light are combined to improve the way in which people experience a space. “Technology alone is not enough. It must be invisible. It needs to work without being noticed, putting people’s experiences at the centre,” explains Lobietti. It is the philosophy that accompanies every project. From sound and video systems for the corporate world to set-ups for wellness facilities, hotels and cultural spaces. Clients include QC Terme, Technogym, Virgin Active, Macron, Granarolo, the University of Bologna, Policlinico Sant’Orsola and numerous hotels all over Italy. But the distinctive trait remains customisation. Every project is built up based on the specific needs of the client. That is why Rokepo works with organisations along the entire journey from technical analysis, design, installation, training to assistance. “We are not interested in providing standard solutions, because every environment has its own characteristics - every client has different goals. Our purpose is to find a balance between technology, functionality and experience,” says Lobietti.
The evolution. The sector has changed radically in almost 30 years. The devices, software and management systems have all changed. The way in which spaces are communicated and enjoyed have changed. But one thing has remained the same: the centrality of the relationship between technology and people. Today, Rokepo also develops proprietary services such as SuiteSound Appeal, a multi-channel music system for hotels, stores, spas and commercial environments, as well as advanced digital signage solutions for dynamic visual communication. Behind every project, however, lies the same question Andrea used to ask himself as a boy when observing the synchronised swimmers: How can people’s experiences be improved through technology? After all, innovations that last the longest do not stem from an obsession with technology, but from the ability to observe reality with curiosity, to listen to needs, to find solutions where others only see a limit.
https://podcast.confindustriaemilia.it/
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