Our history – a timeline
1980
Elettric 80 was founded in Viano with the purpose of supplying software suitable for logistics and transport, as well as designing and installing equipment for various goods sectors.
1990
Elettric 80 acquired the mechanical engineering firm Bieffe (Scandiano), a company with proven expertise in manufacturing industrial robots.
1991
Elettric 80-Bieffe acquired the license from NDC, the Swedish technology development company, to utilise laser technology as applied to factory transport vehicles.
1992
Elettric 80 launches a system world first – fully integrated laser-guided vehicles operating 24/7 in a plant environment. This occurs at Costerplast (Coster Group), a manufacturer of plastic components for the pharmaceutical and cosmetics sector.
1994
Freeway® is launched, the first fully integrated robotic palletising and ground transport system with laser-guided vehicles, complete with labelling, product tracking and a PC monitoring system. In this pioneering stage, Chairman Enrico Grassi works closely with Johan Castegren, who is today the Elettric 80 Managing Director, then at NDC, who are the suppliers of the laser system.
1997
Elettric 80-Bieffe becomes a member of the Order of Research Laboratories of the Ministry for Education, the Universities, and Scientific Research.
1999
In May, 70% of Elettric 80-Bieffe is acquired by the Sasib Group, with the clear objective of developing and expanding the Freeway® System worldwide.
2001
Sasib is acquired by SIG, and Elettric 80 joins the Pack Division, and is rebranded as SIG Elettric 80 S.p.A. In November, Elettric 80 is awarded ISO 9001/1994 Quality Certification by Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance.
2004
In January, following the SIG Group's sale of its Pack Division, the majority shareholding is reacquired by Enrico Grassi (Chairman), Johan Castegren (CEO), and Vittorio Cavirani (CTO). In March, as part of the strategy to strengthen the sales and assistance network, two new branches are opened: one in the United States, near Chicago, and the other in Gothenburg, Sweden.
2005
Elettric 80 celebrates its 25th anniversary.
2006
Elettric 80 establishes a presence in the UK. A long term strategy for expanding into the Asia-Pacific region commences and the first installations take place in Australia. A new revolutionary LGV storage concept, that includes the FOX storage system, is launched to the market. A new production facility is opened in Viano.
2007
Elettric 80 expands its global presence in Poland and Australia. It also launches the Giraffe, an Laser Guided Vehicle (LGV) which has a reach capability of 9 metres.