F
ounded in 1970, Elica has long been synonymous with the design and highquality manufacturing of cooker hoods on a national and international scale. Headquartered in Fabriano in the province of Ancona in central Italy, Elica prides itself on being a ‘Made in Italy’ company with regards to the style and design of its products. Aside from the production of cooker hoods, the group is also a European leader in the design and manufacture of motors for central heating boilers for domestic use.
Investing in new markets and R&D The group has a total of eight production sites – five in Italy and one each in Poland, Germany and Mexico. Already present in global markets including Europe and both South and North America, over the past couple of years Elica has been targeting the growing Asian markets with the establishment of a production facility in India. New product development is very important to Elica and is something into which it puts continuous investment. It has a central R&D department at its headquarters in Fabriano with additional centres in Germany, Poland and Mexico, which cater to their specific local markets. A company spokesperson explained:
“We invest a significant amount as we value R&D as one of the most important aspects of our business. With this commitment to developing new products, we are proud to say that Elica has revolutionised the traditional image of the cooker head sector – it is no longer seen as a simple accessory but a designed object that has improved the standard of kitchens all over the world.” Elica’s commitment to innovation also extends to its eco-friendly product range. As an ISO 14001-certified company, it has developed a range of products that have contributed significantly to the reduction of noise pollution in household kitchens. In 2007, it launched its Space range as the quietest cooker hood in the world. It also has a patent known as Elica Deep Silence which allows for a 40 per cent reduction in noise compared to traditional cooker hoods. A recent addition to the range is the company’s highly innovative L-Original – a new recirculating hood that changes the rules of kitchen air treatment. This is the first hood to employ innovative Cyclone friction technology, which makes it possible to achieve extremely high levels of filter performance compared to traditional hoods, with a grease removal efficiency of over 90 per cent.
Leaders in design As a world conglomerate, Elica has a centralised marketing department comprising of three internal divisions. This includes a design team which has worked alongside eminent international designers such as David Lewis, Gaetano Pesce and Stefano Giovannoni. “At Elica, we consider ourselves not only to be a world leader with regards to market share but also in innovation and design,” adds the spokesperson. A recent example of the company’s focus on unique design is the 35CC cooker hood. This product is composed of two shells in the form of a ‘C’: one external, aesthetic and colourful and the other inside which is functional and made from plain or perforated steel. This offers a unique combination of beauty and functionality in one single product. The hood is available in white, orange, turtledove or lily for the Evoque version; or red, black, yellow and green for the Dynamique version. It comes with high-efficiency lighting thanks to four LEDs that together generate 12 watts, all of which can be controlled with an electronic, rotating touch remote control on the internal shell. The company’s other two marketing divisions are divided into product managerheaded teams dedicated to developing
