On April 16th, there was the press conference whereby Confindustria Ceced Italia has presented the “Orizzonte” Project, created to give new vitality to the field of household appliances in Italy. According to Franco Secchi, president of Confindustria Ceced Italia, the sector could disappear by 2017. “Production volumes decreased by 40% at the end of 2013 compared to 2007 and have more than halved (-55%) compared to the peak of 30 million pieces produced in 2002. The decline in production volumes has resulted in the dramatic reduction in employment levels. Less pronounced was the reduction in value (30%) between 2007 and 2013 thanks to investments, funded entirely by the manufacturers, in products ever more efficient and ecological (environmental sustainability)”. In the project, which also involved the territorial associations of Confindustria (where there are the most important manufacturing sites for the household appliance sector), the strengths of the sector and a strategy for the recovery of the competitiveness (based on innovation of products, processes, organization and business models) have been highlighted. Key points for the recovery will be also research and promotion of the Italian style.
