Safety at work is a key issue and a hot topic. The numerous accidents that occur all too often certainly demonstrate the need for urgent action to make work activities safer. However, there are also some positive signs. One of these is the milestone that Franke Home Solutions recently achieved. It has reached over 1,500 days without accidents at its Italian plant in Sassoferrato (Marche region). To celebrate this achievement, the production site welcomed a delegation from INAIL.
“The Sassoferrato plant – commented Giorgio Rossi, Operation Director of the production site – is a model of excellence that originated in the Marche region and has established itself internationally. Our safety record is not just a number, but the confirmation of our conscious choice to invest daily in prevention, safety, and a culture of responsibility. One of our priorities is to ensure that our people return home after work in exactly the same condition as when they arrived. Focusing on product quality, the well-being of our employees, and sustainability is essential to make Italian manufacturing globally competitive”. The Sassoferrato plant has a total area of 76,000 m² (32,000 m² covered) and employs approximately 300 people. It produces hoods and hobs (induction hobs and with integrated hood).
A strategic investment program
Avoiding accidents is the result of specific choices to make the work environment more modern and safer. At the Sassoferrato site, nestled in the hills of the Marche region, every stage of production is managed, from sheet metal processing to painting and final assembly. In particular, thanks to a strategic investment program, the plant has recently undergone a profound transformation focused on process automation, digitalization as well as sustainability. This helps optimize production times and resources, and also strengthen reliability, decision-making efficiency, and predictive maintenance.
“Every activity at the Sassoferrato plant revolves around one essential principle: safety – says the company –. Thanks to significant investments in the best prevention plant technologies, rigorous procedural protocols, and certified integrated HSE management systems, the site is now the longest-running Franke Home Solutions plant without accidents in Italy and Europe. This commitment has been rewarded for three consecutive years (2022, 2023, and 2024) with the Franke Manufacturing Trophy, an internal award given to the Group’s best production site globally in the categories of safety, quality, and efficiency”.
Safety and sustainability
Franke Home Solutions has launched a series of initiatives at its Sassoferrato plant to protect not only people but also the environment. “The energy transition – explains the company – takes shape through: the installation of photovoltaic panels for the production of electricity, which today cover about 50% of energy needs; the complete replacement of lighting with LED lamps; and the introduction of nanotechnologies in the pre-treatments of sheet metal. This is a solution, in particular, that has made it possible to eliminate phosphating sludge and reduce energy consumption per unit produced by 30%”.
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