This time we take a look at ORONA , a world renowned company in the vertical elevation sector. An organisation, a role model in many aspects, which for companies like AGA has become a key component in development and expansion,both for its collaboration in the field of knowledge and in the technological and digital transformation.
We want to get to know ORONA better. What would you outline as its primary value, the characteristics which best define its business model?
We are the fifth European company in vertical elevation, and we offer 360º solutions which span all the chain of value in the design process, manufacturing, modernisation, rehabilitation and substitution of elevators and escalators or mechanical walkways for all sectors of the market.
Through pragmatic and relevant innovation , the vertical transport solutions encompass state of the art techniques in the management of movement of people, optimising the space available , the users’ experience and safety in the use of the elevator.
Our organisational model, committed to the people, is made up of a team of 5,400 professionals,located in 12different European countries. The installations located in Spain, have the greatest capacity of production of complete elevators in all of Europe, with a park of 250,000 elevators installed ( 1 in 10 new elevators in Europe is ORONA ). Our dedication to our clients makes ORONA the leading reference in service. At the end of 2020 sales amounted to 800 million euros.
These are challenging times for companies. How is ORONA dealing with this crisis, from the human and business perspective?
Our socio-business commitment has become even more relevant in these difficult times, throughout the last year we have continued to offer our conservation services and assistance in Spain and Europe despite the complicated times experienced, reaffirming them as essential services.
All of which only serves to give meaning to the purpose of our brand, to bring people together, bridging the gap which divides us, answering thousands of calls for assistance and going to 250,000 installations in situ which we service.
In our social component, Orona Foundation has also developed social initiatives worth mentioning such as the Jakioro food project, which in collaboration with the Basque Government provided a boost to the primary sector, distributing to the most vulnerable groups more than 222,000 portions of food during the worst months of the pandemic, or the Osasun Leku project, in collaboration with the Chillida Leku museum, which offers a mental relaxation experience to healthcare workers through exercises of personal immersion with the sculptures of the museum.
Accompanied by AGA
It’s time for collaboration and transparency. How would you define your actual relationship with AGA?
ORONA has always opted for long term collaboration with suppliers and in this model transparency is fundamental.
These are troubled times with a great deal of uncertainty, and it is at these times that the relationship with reliable strong suppliers become especially important, as in recent months we have been forced to make endless changes to programming, special transport, new products adapted to the Covid situation, and AGA has accompanied us during this process always contributing positively.
In reality we need to thank all our network of suppliers for the effort made in recent months, which enabled us to keep our factories up and running. Without all of them, we could not have done it.
Today concepts like proximity and production capacity become hugely significant.Do you view the fact that AGA is a manufacturer as an additional benefit?
The concept of proximity has become more relevant lately and we have moved from delocalization to relocalization.
ORONA has always relied on a network of suppliers nearby as we value the flexibility and the confidence which local suppliers provide.
Direct contact with the manufacturer, allows us on the one hand to achieve the necessary competitiveness as we can avoid additional distribution costs. On the other hand, that relationship provides us with the opportunity to call on a design team to support us on new projects, adding experience and additional value by offering another point of view in innovation, which is what ORONA is striving for.
The mobility changes
From the experience of a leader like ORONA. How do you see the evolution of the sector?
We are experiencing one of the most transforming moments of mobility in general and of vertical mobility in particular.
One of the most significant challenges in the sector centres round the digital and innovation transformation, where we are making a great effort as investors, placing our focus on equipping our clients and those who use our installations with the best service possible, as well as optimising the efficiency of operations in our chain of value as competitive leverage.
An example of which is the recent agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) thanks to which we have a Cloud Computing Service, a platform of services and infrastructures of Information Technology ( IT) which will allow us growth and scalability in the near future and placing us at the forefront in the innovation relevant to the service of people.
