INTRODUCTION

Calpak is a company originally founded in 1976 but nowadays, after a long process of innovation, specialized in the field of renewable energy. Although the headquarters are located in Athens, Calpak’s plants are located in several Greek rural areas. The company has made a major investment in the application of “smart’ processing in the recent years, with the partial introduction of new “smart” technologies which are integrated into the existing infrastructure. For example, the gradual introduction of robotics arms for individual stages of the production process result in the complete automation of the production line (construction, configuration, assembly handling).

The introduction of “smart” manufacturing processing has significantly contributed to the optimisation of the company’s production process, as well as to increasing productivity, reducing workload, improving working conditions, the flexibility of the production process, and even improving the promotion actions of products.

INNOVATION AND RESILIENCE

Despite shrinking markets in Europe, Greece’s collector and tank manufacturers have increased their exports two times in a row. In 2015, the solar thermal industry delivered 7% more collector area abroad. “The financial crisis in the country has made our products even more competitive, meaning we were able to optimise our export business,” explained Georgios Xanthopoulos, Export Area Sales Manager at Calpak. Overall, Greek manufacturers have become increasingly confident about international business, prompted by their accomplishments in the global marketplace. The key success factors for last years’ growing exports had been competitive products and flexible manufacturers earning a reputation as reliable suppliers.