A wide range of ideas, managed with flexibility, from an advanced production system.

It is difficult to say whether Angelo Copat, managing director and founder of the group of the same name, takes greater pride in his family or in his firm. In actual fact the two sides of his life have never been in competition, indeed they have always intertwined in a quite remarkable way: his children soon got involved in the family business, having inherited the selfless nature and drive of their father. Gruppo Copat, which celebrated 25 years in the business in 2005, can now boast the structure and results of a wellestablished firm that has always known how to make the most of the resources at its disposal. “While manufacturing technologies are where we have made our largest financial investments, our biggest efforts in terms of human and intellectual resources have been in product innovation and relations with the distribution side of the business”. The investments made have resulted in a current production capability that covers over 100,000 square metres and, more importantly, a consistently wide product range that also covers a broad price range, which means that Copat ranks all the way up from the middle to the upper end of the market. This repositioning has come about most noticeably in the last few years, from 2001 onwards to be precise. In these latter years, the traditional catalogue, through which the firm has always got itself known, has been upgraded to include modern kitchen ideas and systems that incorporate architectural elements and furniture designed as much for living-rooms as for kitchens.

With his great business acumen, and spurred on by his children, especially Gioacchino, executive manager, and Patrizia, marketing manager, Angelo Copat soon realised that aesthetic appeal, the real strength of the Italian-made kitchen, needs efficient management behind it if it is to sell. One particular source of pride and arguably the best indicator of “excellence” in the group as a whole is its integrated sales management system. “The graphics software used by customers interacts with our management software to pilot us through all aspects of our business, as well as enabling to keep a watchful eye on our “orders portfolio” so that we can provide in real time information regarding the stage orders are at and how all related activities are progressing (purchasing, financial obligations, manufacturing commitments and so on), with the possibility to consult those we are working with telematically”. When it comes to plant, property and equipment, the company’s investments have always striven to develop the highest standards of manufacturing quality. “At Gruppo Copat, we are updating all the time and we already have planned for next year more investments on the inventory and warehouse side of things, with the introduction of innovative systems for the management of the finished product prior to shipment”. But the overall industrial design process is always careful to maintain the flexibility needed to respond promptly and efficiently to the inevitable changes and individual vicissitudes of the market. "It is precisely on these things that the future of Italian-made kitchens will depend.

Aesthetics will not be enough, of course, nor will functional efficiency alone. Success or otherwise will be all about the ability to anticipate what people want to improve their quality of life". "And this is indeed the direction in which the new Copat catalogue is moving. The wide range of models it now contains offer considerable scope for personalised kitchen design. Finishes, details and worktops are the pieces of a jigsaw that customers can put together as they wish, without losing any of the essential character of the chosen model". In 2004, with "Madeira" design project, the firm embarked upon a design strategy geared towards the creation of new products that have powerful, instantly recognisable features and do not merely come across as an “assemblage” of attractive components , any number of which are available on the prolific sub-supply market. “Creta”, presented in 2006, is the most obvious demonstration of this point: it takes its inspiration from consumer demands, but also interprets it in a personal way, offering a new and selective design that clearly defines the “Copat style”.