Let us discover the Modena company, a leader in the design, production
and testing in the automotive sector and in other specialist sectors such as
motorsport, defence and industrial automation. HPE COXA boasts a turnover of
€33 million and produces for clients that export 99% of what they make. For
FARE INSIEME, Giampaolo Colletti interviewed Andrea Bozzoli, CEO of HPE COXA
di Giampaolo Colletti
@gpcolletti
Photocredit: Giacomo Maestri e Francesca Aufiero
“We were
born in the right place at the right time.” This is what Andrea Bozzoli, CEO at
HPW COXA, an Emilian gem in the heart of the Italian motor valley repeats as a sort of mantra. The history of this
company cannot but be located in that district of excellence envied by the
world and which has always combined the best human skills with the best
technological knowledge in the automotive sector. Here, we find a professional
community where engineers rule. At HPE COXA, 230 out of 300 people are indeed
engineers. And many others are added each year thanks to the relationship with
those districts of knowledge that churn out talent. But this story goes beyond
the classic engineering perimeter because, in this case, we are talking about
experimentation, innovation, a sustainable and digital future. The road taken
by this Modena company specializing in design, production and testing for the
automotive and other specialist sectors is often uphill, yet it is undertaken
together and at a fast pace. A road fully equipped with the latest
technologies, pervasive and sustainable, and precision production. Because the
future should be better than the present. “We operate in a difficult sector where
the contribution of hardware is definitely important. The automotive sector is
the most complicated in the world - entry and exit barriers are very high and
no vehicles can be produced without investments. Then there are regulations for
active, passive and environmental safety. And a drastically reduced product
life cycle. But it is important to be located in this district where
high-performance products are manufactured. We are lucky to be here, because
teamwork still plays an important role,” explains Bozzoli.
Winning alliances. Teamwork passes
through alliances. This is how HPE COXA was born, created thirteen years ago on
the initiative of engineer Piero Ferrari, son of the founder of Ferrari. The
idea was to complete the offer of HPE, an engineering company set up in 1998
with the aim of creating a young dynamic business. COXA, which had existed for
twenty-five years, was acquired in 2010. A win
winoperation, as we would say. HPE COXA currently boasts a turnover of €33
million and produces for clients that export 99% of what they make. It stakes
its future on technology - engine tests, 3D printers for metallic materials and
calculation software - and, most of all, on people. “On the one hand, there are
young engineers, whose talents have grown as part of our relationship with the
university. On the other hand there are “Veterans”, those with experience in
the field who are recruited to give direction and provide their precious wealth
of experience,” stresses Bozzoli. The best projects are the fruit of this
alliance that cuts across the generations. “We have developed along three
business areas and focus on product development. We also try to imagine the
future: our first business unit is called Evo and deals with electrification
and artificial intelligence,” says Bozzoli. High-value niche productions also
aimed at the defence sector, where we work with all-Italian colossus Leonardo.
Then there is energy transition with a business model that evolves following
the dynamics of a changing market.
People first. But let us keep the focus on people, who are what makes the difference.
The HPE COXA team is young, with an average age of just over 30. This is also
thanks to the connection with the universities which include Unimore in Modena
and Reggio Emilia, Florence, Pisa and Perugia. The University of Bologna has
set up the Mekané advanced training school, for which the company is the sole
commissioner. Theory and practice are inextricably joined - the relationship
with Bologna university combines lectures with training on the job of two years. Young engineers needed. Even in
uncertain times such as that of the pandemic and in the current volatile
market, the company has gone ahead with “Progetto 100” welcoming new graduates.
“We do not have our own academy, we have decided to contact the centres of
knowledge. The following step with the universities was to create two
laboratories on artificial intelligence and electrified systems, intercepting
two e-mobility and AI application megatrends. But it is in times of crisis that
one must invest and doing so takes economic-financial sturdiness and a lot of
courage. We have always focused on high-performance endothermic engines and we
now associate them with electric engines. We did this while the pandemic was in
full swing with investments destined specifically in creating a “smart
e-motor”. It is not just a product, but new thinking as to how this motor can
be placed within a vehicle,” concludes Bozzoli. 32 engineers are currently
working on this new line linked to energy transition: designers, experimenters
and reinforced concrete engineers. From the environment to technology. Because
data becomes an ally. “We are a company made up of engineers, but there are
also IT specialists and mathematicians. We now apply AI to production processes
and products to improve them. We do so by placing sensors to acquire data
needed to provide information to mathematical models,” says Bozzoli. So a
notification is issued before the anomaly occurs. Predictive data improves the
product and satisfies clients. This is also a starting point to creating the
future.
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