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1111 any garages use equipment that is badged by socalled UK manufacturers, but in reality it's been produced by a relatively unknown Italian manufacturer, then re-labelled and sold in large numbers into the trade.
According to Ravaglioli's president Silvano Santi, there are currently hundreds of Ray lifts in use in British and Irish workshops, but they all bear the client's logos.
He regards it as complimentary that well-respected competitors like Bradbury, Tecalemit and Beissbarth should have appreciated Ravaglioli products to this extent—but he adds: It won't happen any more."
The Bologna-based manufacturer has called time on this practice and established a UK distribution network to mirror those set up in Germany, France, the US and most recently Spain.
Column lifts
Ravaglioli started up in 1958 making a range of car repair equipment, hydraulic cranes and presses. More recently it developed a series of two and four-post column lifts as well as a wide variety of scissor-framed lifts.
By 1980 more than a third of its output was exported, and by the early '90s Ravaglioli was making a concerted thrust into foreign markets. The company is now making more than 22,000 lifts a year, more than half of them two-posters, and claims a product portfolio bigger than any of its competitors. Two-thirds of its sales are now made abroad. philosophy: We don't sell to competitors and we don't sell to our end-users either. That's left to our distributors, who know their markets and understand exactly what the customer wants."
Allowing its agents to sell directly to clients helps to keep prices competitive but that doesn't stop Ravaglioli maintaining very high levels of investment in R&D and production systems—at present 8% of the company's annual turnover is ploughed back in this way.
Over the past three years Ravaglioli has invested i115n1 in its three factories. The main Bologna site makes lifting equipment (it recently had 21m worth of laser cutters installed). Nearby Ostellato is home to the tyre service component maker; the small Turin site makes diagnostic and testing gear.
The column lifts are assembled using a mainly automated process; bronze screw nuts and post screws are machined automatically and threads are cold cut to avoid dilatation or impurities. All fabrication parts are sandblasted, hot-washed, phosphate surface treated and given an epoxy resin powder treatment prior to an oven baking.
Electro-mechanical lifts are tested to their full load rating and electro-hydraulic lifts are taken to their SWL; they all carry a 12-month warranty.
In the past few years Ravaglioli has expanded its range to include wheel and tyre equipment, roller brake testers and the latest wheel alignment equipment. The most recent additions include under
frame scissor lifts with capacities ranging from 300kg lifts for Mercedes' new Smart car to 55-tonne models for the heavy commercial and PCV sectors. These can be built in lengths up to 18m or in twin synchronised lift systems.
In all Ravaglioli offers more than 20 designs of platform lift, each of which comes with a wide range of fittings.
Vans are best served by a new 3.04.0-tonne range of mobile column lifts but there's also a new 5.0-tonne two-poster made specifically for long-wheelbase models like the Transit, Sprinter or Daily.
Brake testers
The firm produces a useful line in test lane equipment, especially brake testers. Foden Trucks has one of the larger versions: in fact Ravaglioli holds UK DoT Class 4 and 7 approval for light vehicle brake testers; class 5 approval for trucks is expected next month.
One neat little motorcycle brake tester can even transmit data via a mobile phone link from a local workshop to the transport ministry, in line with forthcoming Italian transport laws.
Its tyre remover range covers everything from small CDVs to truck and tractor tyres up to a 1.8m diameter, and Ravaglioli's most recent range of wheel alignment equipment is among the most sophisticated available, with systems to suit every type of vehicle and trailer. UK market development director R Critchlow says Ravaglioli prides itself having a broad but competitively pric range of workshop equipment.
But unlike many big names in t garage maintenance and aftermarl business, Ravaglioli won't re-badge oftfirm's products. "Everything we sell, make ourselves," says Critchlow.
The seven-strong distributor netwc covers the UK with sites in Belfa Buckingham, Doncaster, Wolverhampt Wrexham, Great Yarmouth and Glasgc Autoparts Ecosse (AE) in Glasgi researched the garage equipment sect prior to becoming an agent and so realised that Ravaglioli was the main mi ufacturer. Other big names were siml repainting or rebadging them and sell them as their own.
AE's general manager John McAri says: "Customer feedback has be extremely encouraging—we're well s isfied with the Ray product and so E our clients."