Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 12th November 2026 Issue no. 1234
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Idrobase Group expands into Eastern markets
As Idrobase Group continues its global trade fair tour, comprising six international exhibitions in three weeks and spanning the US, Ecomondo in Rimini, Asia and Africa, positive news has emerged from China. At the Canton Fair in Guangzhou - widely considered the world's largest trade exhibition - two hot-water pressure washer models, acquired through the purchase of ITM Italia, have drawn significant interest from importers across various nations.
"While we await the launch of 'Dolly Pumps' production lines in Algeria, new opportunities are opening up for the licensed manufacturing of pressure washers in China, specifically for Eastern markets," notes Idrobase's Bruno Ferrarese, who recently also explored the Japanese market.
Idrobase Group - a prime example of innovation within Italy's small-to-medium enterprise sector - is an international leader in components, as well as in the production of pressure washers and misting systems.
Following the transformation of its production process at its headquarters in Borgoricco (near Padua) using the 'Lean' methodology, the company is now moving forward with the integration of Artificial Intelligence, developing a bespoke system supported by a dedicated server. As Bruno Gazzignato, co-owner of the Veneto-based company alongside Bruno Ferrarese, says:
"This is just the first step toward the Idrobase of the future, where the intelligent application of robotics will free up additional energy to be channelled into new projects."
"This represents a market upheaval in which we must play a leading role; otherwise, our entire production system risks losing its competitiveness. One only needs to travel beyond Europe's borders to realise the speed at which advanced nations are moving."
Bruno Ferrarese says he is deeply concerned by the general lack of attention with which Italy is approaching this epochal revolution, with the isolated efforts of a few forward-thinking entrepreneurs not being enough when the economic system as a whole fails to respond.
Marking the company's 40th anniversary, the rapid transformation of the firm - following a fire that struck it in 2022 - is now chronicled in the publication 'Idrobase: From the Perfect Storm to Metamorphosi'.
Says Bruno Gazzignato:
"If we keep doing what we already know how to do, we will only ever reach the point where we already are. This conviction fuelled a fresh start, which became an opportunity to overhaul products, processes, organisational structure and industrial capacity, with three core objectives: greater innovation, higher quality, and a drastic reduction in production costs.
"The goal wasn't simply to produce more, but to produce better."
By adopting the Lean methodology, launched through a project initiated in February 2024, Idrobase Group has reimagined its production processes and organisation.
This has enabled the gradual in-house integration of production activities and expertise that were previously outsourced: what was once purchased from third parties is now something Idrobase can design, manufacture, monitor, and improve directly. This integration has made it possible to oversee multiple stages of the supply chain and to retain key industrial expertise in-house.
In October 2025, Idrobase began the practical implementation of artificial intelligence within its business operations-a new operational tool destined to progressively transform how the company works, manages information, makes decisions and engages with the market. By July 2027, AI is expected to be fully operational at Idrobase, utilising an internally trained large language model.
In the meantime, a new management system has also been introduced, designed to support a more complex and integrated organisation.
Bruno Ferrarese concludes:
"The fire at Idrobase forced us to rebuild. Yet we did not simply start again from where we left off; we started from what we had learned. The difference lies in whether you merely survive a crisis or transform."
12th November 2026