Celebration of GHI 80th anniversary in Euskalduna Conference Centre and Concert Hall

(Source: Europa Press)

The family company GHI Industrial Furnaces celebrated its 80th anniversary in the Euskalduna Conference Centre and Concert Hall in Bilbao, at an event presided by Board Member Íñigo Guinea and Managing Director José Berasategui.
Three generations old, GHI Industrial Furnaces has an annual turnover of 21 million euros and invests over 12 million euros in the Basque Country. It currently has over 8000 installations on five continents and 130 staff working in Biscay Province. In addition, it creates around 300 indirect jobs in the Basque Country through the purchase of goods and services, the majority of which are procured from suppliers in this region.

The anniversary event was attended by Íñigo Bilbao Rekagorri, Galdakao municipal councillor for Finance, Heritage and Economic Development; Ricardo Barkala, Bilbao Deputy Mayor and councillor for Works, Services, and Rehabilitation of Urban and Public Spaces; José María Bilbao Inchaurraga, Biscay Regional Government deputy director for Economic Development, and Javier Ormazábal, chairman of the Basque Country Association of Family Companies, who gave a talk on family companies and values. Numerous customers were also present, some of whom had travelled from Japan, Germany and England specifically to attend the event, along with company suppliers and employees. After a number of speeches, a cocktail party was held in the main hall.

As a result of its business, the company furthermore spends over 15 million euros on procurement of goods and services, 75% of which are purchased from suppliers in the Basque Country. All equipment is then assembled and tested in the Galdakao facilities. From there, they are shipped to countries all over the world, where more than 1000 installations have been supplied, particularly to Latin America and Europe. International business has expanded, and in fact accounts for 70% of income, on average, over the last 25 years. But, as Berasategui has commented, “we won’t stop here; we want to increase our international presence and continue expanding into new markets” This is a reference to the new sales office opened last year in Mexico, a country where the company “already has a sizeable customer portfolio”.

Berasategui also highlighted the focus on the new line of Technical Support 4.0 services, which are an area “with tremendous potential for growth, given the possibilities offered by applying new technologies to industry for a company with over 8000 installations worldwide”. Ana Isabel Portilla, GHI Sales Director, gave a brief overview of the history of the company’s visual identity and presented its new corporate image.

GHI Industrial Furnaces has increased its annual turnover by 30% in respect of the average figure over the last 10 years, reaching 21 million euros, and has also increased staffing levels by 30% over the last 5 years, the highest recruitment taking place in recent months and 41 new staff being contracted since 2016. This has also meant renewal of 30% of the workforce. Today, 40% of the total number of employees are technical, advanced and degree-holding engineers.