Bonfiglioli Australia’s Managing Director, Martin Broglia, explains how the company’s new customer service model has transformed the business.
Martin Broglia, Managing Director for Bonfiglioli ANZ, joined the company in July 2019 and has helped its transformation.
Bonfiglioli has a history that spans 60 years and 80 countries, and according to Broglia, has become known for its industry solutions for its planetary gear systems.
However, he says that the company has taken a renewed, customer-centric focus.
“Bonfiglioli in Australia and New Zealand has a reputation for excellence, innovation and sustainability, but there is still room to improve when it comes to customer service.
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“Early in the pandemic, we anticipated worldwide shortages of products, especially in the mining industry. Projects in this space are planned for the long-term, and delays can cause serious issues.
“We increased our stock significantly during this time to ensure projects were delivered on time.”
During the past year, the business has also worked closely with customers to find solutions to common problems within the industry. The result is the 3/H series of combination gearboxes, which offer the high performance and efficiency of planetary gearboxes with the robust reliability of bevel helical gearboxes.
Suitable for any heavy-duty applications that requires slow, controlled movements, the combination unit can provide the best of both worlds while having a significantly reduced weight, lead time and cost.
Broglia says the unit came directly from discussions with the mining industry and is the result of extensive research and development.
“Our customer applications engineering (CAE) team learned what the industry needed and worked with our development team to find a solution,” he says.
Engineering support is key to Bonfiglioli’s new customer-centric approach, with a dedicated team to work alongside customers and design custom solutions. When the scope of a project is outside of what a sales engineer can provide, the CAE team begins drafting potential designs using specialised software to determine bearing life, thermal analysis, and more.
As part of its standard offering, Bonfiglioli also provides a standard commissioning option for all projects, with on-site commissioning and installation assistance if required. Engineers are also divided geographically and by sector specialist to make it easier for customers to get in touch with the right person.
Broglia says Bonfiglioli has expanded the number of staff on hand so that there are more people available to assist customers when needed.
“Everyone’s going through the same pandemic, and all need quick access to stock. That’s why we’ve increased our local holding and staffing,” he says.
“We have also reworked our factory layout for improved workflows and enhanced service delivery, with a new spray paint booth for quicker drying.
“In the future, we are looking to expand our localised assembly capabilities to cover more types of gearboxes and increased sizes, and we are looking to grow our staff and facilities to account for this.”