A company was established in the 1950s in Formigine, in the Modena area, which became a pioneer in the products made, in the services offered, and in the way of understanding work and the relationship with the public. Giampaolo Colletti interviews Elena Lancellotti, chairman of Tellure Rôta for FARE INSIEME
by Giampaolo Colletti
@gpcolletti
Photocredit: Giacomo Maestri e Francesca Aufiero
This is the
story of a wheel that makes thousands of kilometres around the world. A special
wheel that never stops. A wheel born in that land of Emilia, which is famous for
its concentration of excellence in that mix of advanced technologies,
continuous research, valuable people. And then there is the ecosystem that
gives strength to a way of doing business and ultimately - as we often say - of
creating a community. A wheel, we said before. A simple product, but if the one
used is not right in terms of capacity, smoothness, climatic conditions, use...
That wheel doesn't turn and creates various problems. Here then was the
brilliant intuition: inventing the right wheel for the right use.
Story of a winning idea. In fact,
what we are about to tell is certainly a wheel of overwhelming success. We are
in Formigine, a town of thirty-five thousand souls in the Modena province that
stretches north. Tellure Rôta was born here in 1953. It was the first Italian
company and presently one of the leaders in Europe for the production and sale
of wheels and supports for industrial, civil and domestic use. It serves more
than 2,000 customers in 70 countries thanks to the professionalism of 170
qualified employees. The export share is 60%. A product that seems very simple,
but that is actually very complex. Production is one kilometre from Ferrari. In
short, they are almost opposite each other. And all this is not accidental. It
all started when Roberto Lancellotti abandoned his military career and
engineering studies to embark on a career path. He became Enrico Rota's partner
in an artisan company called R.O.T.A. Costruzioni Meccaniche, engaged in the
production of car radiators and spare parts for Fiat Trattori. Then in 1953 the
company became a joint stock company through the acquisition and subscription
of a capital increase of the Tellure joint stock company, changing its name to
Tellure Rota Spa from the union of Tellure
and Rota. The story goes that in
1955 Lancellotti, while he was in customs, saw a box coming from Germany
containing extremely heavy, rubber-coated cast iron trolley wheels. Hence, the
idea of designing lighter wheels in pressed sheet metal. No sooner said than
done. Shortly afterwards, the production of the 59 Series wheels began with
pressed sheet metal hubs, bolted with solid rubber chained groove rings
supplied by Pirelli. Subsequently, at the request of a customer, the 58 Series
was launched, similar to the previous one but with Sigma branded elastic
rubber. Little by little the range of rubber wheels started to expand. In 1961
Lancellotti and his wife acquired the partner's shares and registered the
Tellure Rôta brand. The company increasingly specialised in the production of
wheels and supports, also inserting polyurethane wheels and activating a
chemical laboratory for the testing of polyurethane compounds. We are in the 80s and there was a
strong need to automate assembly lines through projects designed internally to
increase the productivity and consistency of product quality. To increase brand
awareness and retain distributors, Tellure Rôta became a sponsor of major
sporting events. Pioneers by definition: in 1990 the company introduced the
first CRM, in 2003 it prepared the first sustainability report for transparency
towards its employees, now in its twentieth edition. In 2006, to counteract
imports from China, it tried to improve customer service and implemented Lean
Manufacturing in the production area. In 2015 it designed an automatic plant
for polyurethane and expanded the production units with the acquisition of two
adjacent factories, which allows it to operate today on an area of fifteen
thousand square metres.
Company profile. From history to
product. «There are five thousand items
in the catalogue, which have a lot of variability because there are many uses:
we go from a diameter of 30 millimetres up to a diameter of 400 millimetres,
with capacities that vary from 10 kg to 4500 kilogrammes per wheel, with very
different tread materials from polypropylene, rubber, nylon, polyurethane. In
addition to the wheels, the design concerns the supports that are fundamental
for connecting the trolley and the equipment to the wheel and that therefore
allow movement and manoeuvrability: they are made of pressed steel sheet or
forged steel», states Elena Lancellotti, chairman of Tellure Rôta, second
generation at the helm of the family business.
From present to future. Meanwhile, time passes and mobility solutions change between
functionality, safety, energy efficiency, recyclability and sustainability. «We
are increasingly moving towards modern logistics and with safety regulations it
becomes essential to use wheels that reduce effort and improve manoeuvrability.
Therefore, we moved from low-thickness, hard polyurethanes to high-thickness,
more elastic ones, from rubber rings to recycled rubber rings», specifies
Lancellotti. Meanwhile, Italy beats Germany. A match that sees us as winners
because this Emilian company plays the game differently, offering flexibility,
customisation and counselling. «We adopt the most modern software for the
conception, design and organisation processes, but it is the people who make
the difference», says Lancellotti. Already in 1962 Tellure Rota had a
laboratory with a pilot plant to test polyurethane compounds, today our TR Lab
Test & Research has been accredited to the High Technology Network of the
Emilia-Romagna Region since 2011. «Which is our distinctive feature? To produce
only wheels and supports with a mind and heart in Emilia, a land of mechanical
excellence. I have worked in the company since 2000, when I was 44 years old
and I especially remember at the beginning the fear of choices, the fear of
making mistakes. But I was lucky because I was always supported by my father
and my sister Emanuela, who still today constitutes a very important pillar of
the company. Which are the most fulfilling moments? When I see happy
collaborators», concludes Lancellotti First people, then technologies. What a
great lesson!
https://podcast.confindustriaemilia.it/
Read the other interviews
