FNA Compressors, an Italian air compressor manufacturer, has adopted RISE with SAP for cloud digital transformation in an effort to introduce a system that can be easily modified, has built-in security features, and can keep up with the demands of a dynamic and expanding market.
Over 40 million compressors have been manufactured by the Italian-founded international business FNA since its establishment in 1948. Establishing itself as a leading producer of air compressors for industrial, professional, and do-it-yourself applications, the company deems itself the only operator in the world to serve all three markets and owner of the industry’s biggest product portfolio.
The FNA Group, headquartered in Turin, Italy, employs about 1,300 people across its Italian, French, Chinese, and American manufacturing facilities, all of which contribute to the company’s mission of meeting the annual compressed air demand of the national and international markets by producing more than 1,500,000 piston compressors and over 11,000 screw compressors. The company has had to deal with a lot of difficulties in recent years, particularly as a consequence of the growing economic globalization. Because of commercial factors like duties and external market conditions like the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions, the dependability of distant production systems is compromised, thereby increasing the risk of interruptions in the supply chain.
Roberto Balma, President and Chief Executive Officer at FNA Compressors, explained that while globalization is an issue facing the whole industrialized world, the corporation has an additional, unique difficulty as a result of the aging of its workforce. He went on to say that the company’s management, who has been with it throughout the entire 30-year journey, is largely responsible for its success.
“To date, our information systems are based on AS/400 (Application System/400) with ACG management solutions that have been adapted over time to our needs. It is a somewhat dated system that can no longer give guarantees of updates in the medium to long term,” Balma detailed.
Furthermore, he stated that young individuals and professionals with an interest in working in cutting-edge, high-tech settings where they have access to data in real-time and are guaranteed a consistent response time are the ones FNA is hoping to recruit. Therefore, Balma added that the generational change poses an additional challenge for FNA in the shape of the need for increased standardization and improvement in information management and implementation.
Selecting SAP for Cloud Implementation
The goal of FNA’s new operational model is to fully adopt the standards provided by today’s software solutions so that the organization can take the benefit of continuous system updates while minimizing the need for costly, time-consuming upgrades. FNA’s decision to go with SAP was the result of a thorough and deliberate process that began with the pre-selection of the technology partner in charge of making the switch to its new intelligent management system, RISE with SAP. (InsideSAP often references articles from websites in other languages to bring you as much information as possible.)
RISE with SAP is a cloud-based business intelligence and analytics solution that is sold on a subscription basis and has a single responsible party for all service-level agreements, business operations, and customer support. The all-encompassing, customer-tailored, and intelligent offering enables a holistic digital transformation that extends further than simply performing a technical migration to the cloud or adopting new technology in order to accelerate the journey of businesses toward becoming intelligent enterprises.
According to Balma, three primary factors led to FNA’s decision to go with SAP. He began by stating that SAP is the most suitable solution for the company because of its breadth of experience and the fact that its operation spans from large-scale distribution to extensive manufacturing units. In addition to its worldwide footprint and decades of experience, Balma said, the German enterprise software giant also offers consolidated technology on the market, both of which make it easier to find people who are proficient in SAP.
Commenting on the collaboration with FNA, Adriano Ceccherini, Chief Operating Officer (COO) at SAP Italy and Greece, said that innovation and long-term vision are the basis of the customer’s choice to switch to the Business Transformation as a Service (BTaaS) offering RISE with SAP. He shared:
“Despite the role of a market leader that the company’s management has earned over time, this is not enough to ensure a future of constant development, if not with the support of an innovation that helps them transform themselves into an intelligent and resilient company. We are also very proud of the leading role that our partners, in this case, Derga, play in guiding customers on a successful digital transformation journey.”
Indeed, FNA has confirmed that Derga Consulting, SAP’s implementation partner, was also a deciding factor due to the reassurance it provided on the company’s familiarity with the industry, size, and leadership style of FNA, as well as its grasp of the specific demands of the organization. Alexander Gallmetzer, CEO at Derga Consulting said:
“During the months of selection activities carried out with FNA, Dr. Balma and Dr. Santinelli have transferred to me the entrepreneurial spirit strongly devoted to maintaining and consolidating the position of market leader acquired over the years. The renewal of processes – to align them with industry best practices – and the desire to adopt a new integrated cutting-edge technology led to the choice of SAP S/4HANA Cloud as the best platform to accompany FNA in this important digital transformation journey.”
