GIESSE – Joining the ERA family
A little over 12 months ago ERA parent company Tyman Plc acquired Italian based hardware business Giesse. With two factories just outside Bologna in Italy and one in Beijing China, Giesse specialises in the development and production of window and door hardware for the aluminium sector. The integration of Giesse into the ERA business further strengthens ERA’s offer to provide UK customers with the most technically adept and expansive hardware offer available. ERA CEO Darren Waters explains why Giesse’s aluminium expertise is the perfect fit with ERA.
“Aluminium is hot news. We’re seeing unprecedented levels of innovation in the door and window industry with new aluminium systems coming to market on a fairly frequent basis. What’s interesting is the growth in aluminium has also caused a ripple effect with a surge in R&D across the entire industry, a great outcome for us all. Three years ago we recognised the growth opportunity in the UK for aluminium door and window systems, but we also recognised a number of challenges around the provision of hardware for the aluminium market. At that time, many fabricators were using UPVC hardware modified for aluminium or sourcing from companies overseas resulting in long lead times and very little opportunity for R&D collaboration. Our acquisition of Giesse has completely eliminated both of those challenges with an established and experienced UK interface through ERA providing an unrivalled supply chain for specialist hardware dedicated to the aluminium market.
“Giesse became an acquisition target primarily because of its innovation credentials, much like ERA, Giesse invests heavily in developing hardware that is unrivalled both in terms of technical excellence and breadth of range; indeed many similarities can be drawn between Giesse and another strong ERA brand Fab&Fix. In the last twelve months we have worked hard to integrate Giesse into our ‘total security’ offer and today, fabricators can order Giesse product direct from ERA, shipped from our warehouse in Wolverhampton to arrive next day. While this is a very practical benefit we mustn’t underestimate the importance of supply chain in a market that is both dynamic and fluid.
“But under ERA ownership, the real opportunity for fabricators and designers of aluminium doors and windows is in the development of bespoke hardware. We’ve been working with fabricators in the UK for decades designing and developing hardware and locking solutions to enable their systems to stand out; it’s in part this capability that has grown the ERA brand to where it is today. But for the aluminium market, where design finesse defines the market, we’re keen to work with forward-thinking firms looking to apply this approach to their hardware offering too.
“It’s still early days in the development of the go-to-market strategy for Giesse but already I believe we are well on the way to establishing Giesse as the aluminium hardware brand in the UK. The volume of Giesse hardware leaving our distribution depot is increasing day-on-day - a sure sign that the aluminium market in the UK continues to thrive. Over the next 12 months we will continue to develop the UK Giesse range whilst ensuring that we can continue to meet the needs of this growing market. This is an incredibly exciting time for any business operating in the aluminium fenestration market; our aim is to be the partner of choice for dedicated aluminium hardware solutions, thereby helping to deliver our customers a real point of difference.”
