In the industry, an “innovation and R&D” unit is dedicated to creating new products or services to better meet customer demands or create a new need. The unit aims to create or improve products or processes. Innovation encompasses, to use the terminology of the OECD’s Oslo Manual, the scientific, technological, organizational, financial and commercial approaches related to these objectives.
At NO-NAIL BOXES as in any manufacture, it is an essential step for the performance, competitiveness and safety of our services and products. Here is how we work on it.
Our innovation and R&D unit
Our Research and Development unit is made up of 5 collaborators and experts of the company:
- Thierry Allard, Responsible for the sample section
- Yves Piront, Maintenance Responsible
- Stéphane Guirsch, Technical Manager
- Pauline Piron, Marketing Coordinator of ALIPA Group
- Boris Remy, Sales Manager
The innovation and R&D unit gets together every 4 to 6 weeks. It is transversal in its approach so as to be able to respond to and anticipate a maximum number of subjects, because innovation affects all the company’s business spheres. This is a regular investment of human time on the part of the teams, and this approach could be part of a more global reflection at the level of the ALIPA Group. 15 people participated in training on the basics of intellectual property and patents. This training was provided by the Institut de la Propriété Intellectuelle du Luxembourg and covered issues such as inventions protectable by patents, industrial designs, confidentiality clauses and agreements, etc. Participants also learned how intellectual property can be integrated into the innovation process. The acquisition of this knowledge also encourages cross-functionality between the different professions, and in particular a better understanding of the design office’s missions and challenges.
Some concrete examples
Currently, several projects are underway, some of which require prototyping phases. Recently, a tool has been developed to facilitate the assembly of the boxes. The optimization of the printing of the boxes and the improvement of ergonomics are also subjects that have been dealt with by the unit.
For example, the Eurobox is the subject of all our attention in terms of innovation. It has been designed to be able to reuse Euro pallets and using only two elements: a lining and a top, delivered flat and adjustable in height. In this same dynamic, our innovation unit is currently working on an ambitious project dedicated to the manufacture of large boxes for the very specific needs of our customers.
Beyond ergonomics and tools, the quality of working conditions and the improvement of daily life are also part of our prerogatives. It is a reflection that is fundamentally based on the feedback from the workshops. The workers make relevant remarks and observations that are taken into consideration by the R&D unit.
NO-NAIL BOXES and, more broadly, the ALIPA Group are constantly reflecting on the performance and improvement of their processes and products, with a daily concern for agility and a relevant response to new markets. Innovation and R&D are an integral part of our ecosystem because a company that does not innovate is a company that dies.
