Values and value: the pillars of success of Aetna Group

A long and successful entrepreneurial tradition, a solid patrimony of values and constant innovation as a guiding principle to anticipate market demands. These the pillars on which rests the leadership of Aetna Group, Italian company capable of winning the global challenge in a competitive sector like that of packaging.

The entrepreneurial tradition is that of the Aureli family, that for 60 years and three generations is synonymous with vision, competency and courage in facing the evermore rapid and unpredictable changes imposed by the market.
The founder and President Alfredo Aureli and the CEOs - his son and daughter Enrico and Valentina - represent that guarantee of company reliability and continuity that ensure a further added value to each and every product, service and solution proposed by the brands Aetna: Robopac, Robopac Sistemi, Dimac and Prasmatic.

     Alfredo Aureli                      Enrico Aureli                              Valentina Aureli
Of course, it takes more than a good offer to successfully run a concern: it takes vision, skills, courage, and a solid business culture, shared over time as individual business leaders change hands. A business culture which in this case is based on two core beliefs that are as easy to express as they are challenging to put in practice. Alfredo Aureli explains: «My father, who started off our entrepreneurial tradition, always repeated this motto: the business above all else and the customer first. It’s a lesson that I have never forgotten and have instilled in my own children». The next generation has made this philosophy their own and share it - including in a “Book of Values” - with employees, no matter where in the world they happen to operate.

Handbook of principles, corporate identity
Guiding principles and recommendations on behaviors in line with the values of a business that operates in more than 120 countries in direct competition with the major multinationals: «We already began to form our own idea of business culture a long time ago - explains Valentina Aureli, who runs the group together with her brother Enrico - and last year we realized that it was time to share it, in two directions: externally, in order to communicate to customers that we are more than just a supplier but rather a partner capable of accompanying them in the growth of their business; but also internally, to make this culture a resource of the entire concern, because we’re convinced that an enterprise can grow and stay healthy only if its constituent parts speak a common language and share a common sense of direction».
This is how the book came into being, following the ethical certification by the Bureau Verita (world leader in control, checking and certification services for Quality, Health and Safety). «The market has made us this challenge, Enrico Aureli underlines  - and we responded to it without hesitation as an opportunity for ongoing  growth and  improvement. And here too  we are truly fortunate in serving big multinational the likes of Coca Cola, Nestlè, Pepsi and many more because fulfilling their needs means staying updated on all fronts and responding with a cooperative, proactive approach».

The proof in the pudding
This business culture has major practical repercussions. First of all, it translates into qualities that are as precious as they are rare these days, as well as promising numbers: Aetna is a leading concern worldwide, with renowned solid foundations and professionalism, operating in more than 120 countries, with 500 employees, 6 subsidiaries, a global assistance service and, last but not least, an annual turnover of 105 million euro.

With its four brands it supplies all types of end of line installation, from semi-automatic wrapping machines with smart technology to cutting edge automatic machinery, from industrial bundling machines to custom packaging solutions. But that’s not all. At Aetna, business culture means a culture of innovation and, in addition to machines, the concern realizes Technology Labs: «truly windows to the future - Enrico Aureli calls them - thanks to which customers and partners can experience firsthand the most innovative products of the Group’s brands and test for themselves the machinery that we will produce for them. This is an opportunity that we offer even to those incapable of visiting our facilities in person, because the tests can be conducted remotely, from anywhere worldwide».

This passion for innovation led Aetna Group to turn upside down its vision of the market and its role within it. «With the Technology Labs we are able to supply our customers satisfactory consultations both on the most suitable packaging for preserving a delicate product until the moment of consumption and on rationalizing costs». Hence in Aetna Group - Alfredo Aureli explains with satisfaction - it is therefore evident how “Values” and “Culture” will translate into added value for our customers, who find in us a partner able to satisfy and even anticipate their specific needs; but they also feature as the foundation of a company that, thanks to its cultural growth, is able to guarantee and ensure a healthy economic development.

The latest from R&D
Where Aetna Group’s own business culture comes to life is in innovation, as demonstrated last April at Interpack. Here are just a few examples.

The top in userfriendly technology. At the German fair, Robopack launched Multilevel Control: an innovative hardware and software solution featured on all series 8 Rotoplat wrapping machines, with functions that can be easily and intuitively activated on each of the six saveable programs.
This system enables customizing the various operational parameters, making it possible to program specific cycles as the need for them arises, thus guaranteeing optimal protection of products and the “right” level of consumption of material, with considerable savings in stretchfilm.
With Multilevel the control of the load height can be broken down into 5 different levels, which can all be adjusted for thickness; for each it is possible to set the film stretch percentage, pre-stretch (only on carriages with drive), reinforcement cycles, plate rotation speed, carriage speed, film roping type and even pressure platen use or bypass.

Ergonomics and respect for the user first. Dimac is the first in a new generation of bundling machines. St@r Master represents the latest edition of the well-known ST@R bundling machines, with enhanced performance in terms of wrapping quality, consumption rates and operator safety.
The main new features: ample use of servo-motors, enhanced accessibility, safety, quicker maintenance, graphic interface and data management.

Advanced modularity for mid-range speeds. Prasmatic presents he new TC300 bundling machine as an end of line solution that is more modular, universal and flexible than any other currently available for mid-speed productions.
It can execute all tertiary packaging types: carton wraparound or full height tray, bundles with flat carton and film, bundles with tray and film, bundles with film only. According to the packaging type and product characteristics, the speed varies between 30-35 packagings/min (for carton wraparound) and 45 bundles/min (tray and film).

The evolution of wrapping int the end-of-line logistics. With Nip&Tuck, Robopac Sistemi solves once and for all problems relating to queuing after wrapping: accidental stops in automatic storage; condensation (with warm, frozen or humid products that need to breathe as well as smoked products); and hot parts that pose fire hazards.

Key words for a common language Last year all Aetna Group employees received a special gift: the concern’s “Book of Values”, a summary and explanation of the group’s philosophy with examples of specific behaviors, inside and outside the workplace. Transparency, Tradition, Integrity, Responsibility, Technology, Innovation, Passion, Respect, Global Culture and Teamwork are demonstrated in workplace relations, first and foremost with customers, the center of the reflections and suggestions of the Romagna-based concern.