World Report

Public and private bodies are working hard to ensure that Piedmont maintains its lead in the information age

trategically located in one of the most industrialised areas of Europe, Piedmont has an intriguing political and industrial history. It was here that the foundations of Italian unity were laid. The region’s capital, Turin, became a powerhouse for Italy’s 20th century technological revolution and change is still the watchword today.
It’s Piedmont’s industrial base that now faces a challenge. The focus is on car giant FIAT Auto, based in Turin and historically a name that is synonymous with the region’s industrial backbone. The FIAT group is Italy’s largest private employer, but its car unit is struggling and proposals to turn the company around could put over 8,000 jobs at stake.
Piedmont’s public authorities have already recognised the need for change and are working with private companies and academic institutions to make the region a leader in the high-tech and information age.

“Over the past few years, Piedmont has been involved in a range of important investments that will change its image,” says Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, the regional minister for industry, labour, new economy, professional training, EU and international affairs and commerce. “Its skilled workforce, its geographical position, its good transport links and its big airport will make Piedmont easier to reach, so it will benefit from the opportunities that Europe offers.”

Enzo Ghigo
‘Government grants are helping to create bridges of excellence’

Gilberto Pichetto Fratin
‘Thanks to investment, local firms have become productive partners’

“We support technological innovation because this is our future,” Mr Pichetto Fratin explains. “Our competitiveness is based on quality, and that will be our niche.”
Savino Rizzio, president of Federpiemonte, the regional federation of industrialists’ associations, argues that: “The core of Italy’s ability to be successful is based on creativity: in textiles and clothing, in leather products, in foods and beverages, and finally mechanics. The ability of Italians to look ahead to find new solutions for old problems is relevant to the support of our international presence.”

Technological change has been a lifeline grasped by many local companies, including those in the car industry. “Thanks to investment in technological innovation and specialised know-how in recent years, local subcontractors and manufacturers of parts have succeeded in becoming productive partners,” comments Giuseppe Pichetto, president of Turin’s Chamber of Commerce.

Information and communications technology is widely seen as key to the area’s future prosperity. Piedmont already has the highest percentage of people employed in that sector of any region in Italy. “Computer science has become widespread and has favoured the birth of many small and medium-sized enterprises,” says Enzo Ghigo, the president of the Piedmont region.
“Grants from the Italian government to university and research teams are helping to create ‘bridges of excellence’ – groups of people carrying out research, which attracts the attention of foreign investors, who then find the right technologies to carry on developing the business.”

Piedmont has seven provinces, Turin, Alessandria, Asti, Biella, Cuneo, Novara, Verbano Cusio Ossola and Vercelli. Each has its own chamber of commerce and industrial or agricultural specialisations, characterised by the region’s propensity for innovation. Turin is the economic heart of the region and specialises not only in automotive engineering but also electronics, robotics and telecommunications. Asti is renowned for its wine production and Biella for woollen fabrics and state-of-the-art textile machinery. Cuneo province thrives on its reputation for good food, wine and handicrafts, especially woodwork and furniture making. Novara distinguishes itself as a world leader in the design of taps and valves, but also produces clothing, in particular sportswear and swimwear. Verbano Cusio Ossola has developed a role in the manufacture of small household appliances and Vercelli is active in commerce, biomedicine and agriculture, particularly the cultivation of rice.

The changing nature of the economic environment means that many local firms will have to take their activities to a wider global audience. Several companies already have a worldwide reputation, like Biella-based textile business Fratelli Piacenza. They specialise in high quality woollen fabrics for the clothing industry and are recognised internationally for their quality products and hi-tech production techniques. A regional internationalisation office opened in Piedmont last year, to provide information and contacts to local businesses on how to market themselves abroad.

The other side of the coin is the need to attract foreign interest to the region. This has been happening with the keen encouragement of the national government in Rome. “Piedmont is the first region in Italy to initiate a project for the internationalisation of incoming investment, through the Agency for Investments in Turin and Piedmont (ITP),” says Italy’s minister for foreign trade, Adolfo Urso. “Since it started operating in 1998, the ITP has facilitated the arrival and development in Piedmont of more than 50 companies.”
Greater British involvement in the region’s transformation would be welcomed. “The British business world should realise that Piedmont shares lots of common characteristics with some British regions,” says Mercedes Bresso, the president of Turin province. “But it seems that the UK is currently more inclined to have links with the US rather than Europe.”

Enrico Salza
‘It became a top European city. Now Turin is ready to re-invent itself again’

According to Enrico Salza, vice-president of the sizeable Piedmont-based bank Sanpaolo IMI, re-invention is nothing new for the region, and especially for Turin. “It developed from a Roman camp and then medieval town to became the first capital of Italy in 1861 after unification,” he says. “Then at the beginning of the 20th century, the ruling class re-invented it and made it one of the top European cities in the industrial sector, famed for its cars, coffee, phones and cinema. Now Turin is ready to re-invent itself again.”
Symbolic of such changes is the way that Fiat’s huge Lingotto car factory, erected in Turin at the turn of the century, has been converted into one of Europe’s biggest multi-functional exhibition venues (pictured opposite), as a showcase for diversity and innovation. The area around it is a major focus for redevelopment, part of a comprehensive facelift for the city.

“Turin will be completely transformed over the next 20 years,” says its mayor, Sergio Chiamparino. “Many new buildings will be put up, including a landmark new regional headquarters – Palazzo della Regione – a second technical university, a very large library, a centre for modern art and lots of institutions for medical and technological research.”
At least some of that will be ready for the Winter Olympics in 2006, which are due to be held in Piedmont. This event will draw world attention to the region, so both public and private concerns throughout Piedmont are determined that everything will be at its best.