materialfluss: Mr. Lucio, looking back at what has happened over the past 18 months, the question cannot be avoided: How does AR Racking rate the past year? How has the company dealt with the situation caused by Covid-19?

José Manuel Lucio: 2020 was a complicated year for all of us. As a solution developer and manufacturer, we have had to face completely new challenges. The management of our international projects in particular had to be completely reorganized, and teleworking, video conferencing and working from home became decisive factors in the exchange of information. Nevertheless, the logistics sector has had a very busy year, so we have overcome all the challenges both in project execution and in generating new business with good results.

mfl: Now that almost half of the pandemic year has passed, what do you expect for 2021? What developments do you see for your industry and intralogistics?

Lucio: The logistics sector is a very agile and flexible industry that has remained active even during the worst phases of the pandemic, and intralogistics is still very dynamic. For 2021, we expect continued sustainable growth for both AR Racking and the industry as a whole.

mfl: The pandemic has driven a lot of development in the industry in terms of automation and digitalization requirements. In your opinion, what are the current trends and where is logistics heading?

Lucio: A key trend is the transformation of supply chains. Many of our customers have adapted their logistics to respond to new requirements or new distribution channels. This requires logistical adjustments that necessitate new investments or changes to existing systems. AR Racking covers precisely these requirements with its range of services.

mfl: Beyond the longer-term trends, what challenges do you see intralogistics facing today and how does AR Racking meet them?

Lucio: Intralogistics is increasingly characterized by growing requirements in terms of efficiency, speed and automation. Against this backdrop, AR Racking develops and realizes the necessary storage solutions that enable customers to integrate new technologies that appear on the market in the future and flexibly adapt their systems to changing business processes.

mfl: What does this change and challenge mean for you as the new EMEA Sales Director of AR Racking - what do you see as your most important tasks now?

Lucio: The mission is twofold: on the one hand, keyword German-speaking market, which Sales Director Jörg Buschmann looks after from Rüdesheim, I want to expand our presence in the markets in which we are already represented - and, as Sales Director, of course also open up new markets. There are still some interesting addresses in my area of responsibility, Europe, Middle East & Africa. On the other hand, I want to play a formative role in the further development and expansion of AR Racking's efficiency. The aim is to consistently align the company and its processes with the defined global strategic guidelines for developing and supporting the markets. Service and market presence will become an even greater focus.

mfl: It will be essential to adapt to the specifics of each market. What approach, what strategy will you pursue?

Lucio: We will consolidate an organization that is able to respond to the local characteristics of the market while following and taking into account global trends and developments in order to develop efficient solutions and tools. The international character and project planning of AR Racking will be complemented by the direct customer proximity and knowledge of the specific conditions of the individual markets that have always characterized us.

mfl: How do you actually work to provide the personal and close service that is perfectly tailored to the specific needs of the market and the project?

Lucio: Our local sales networks, who know the market and the industry very well, and our technical teams, who are able to meet the specific requirements, are geared towards developing and implementing market-oriented solutions for the respective individual requirements in terms of know-how, product range and technical possibilities. Regardless of the industry, the customer or the size of the project, our teams manage the orders from planning to turnkey handover in a holistic project management approach. We want our customers to see us as a trustworthy partner at their side during project implementation rather than as a pure service or product provider.

mfl: What would you describe as the specific added value of AR Racking?

Lucio: Our path to becoming the most valued brand in the storage solutions market segment will be convincingly flanked by outstanding product quality, intelligent solutions and excellent service. AR Racking is positioning itself as a project partner that every company wants to work with to define and implement its logistics solutions today and tomorrow.

mfl: Mr. Lucio, thank you very much for the interview.

Published in: materialfluss SPEKTRUM 2021.