Pininfarina’s Chairman and CEO, Andrea Pininfarina (above), and its COO, Silvio Angori, have met with representatives of the engineering firm's unions to present the strategic lines of the firm’s new Industrial Plan.

Pininfarina’s Chairman and CEO, Andrea Pininfarina, and its COO, Silvio Angori, have met with the representatives of the corporate RSUs (combined in-house unions).

Firstly, the strategic lines of the firm’s new Industrial Plan approved by the Board of Directors on November 12 were presented: maintain and develop the manufacturing operations with the adoption of a lean manufacturing model designed to provide customers with the world’s best quality in automobile manufacturing; foster further growth and development of the activities that provide services to the automotive industry with the goal of maintaining the Company’s position as the creativity and innovation leader in the field of design and increase its share of the product and process engineering market; extract the brand’s value, which was identified in market surveys that underpin the new industrial plan as the Company’s most important asset.

The final version of this Plan is due for examination and approval next February. Stress was laid on the desire of the stockholders to bring the Company back to profitability by maintaining and strengthening its design, engineering and production activities, so as to ensure a stable future for the Group’s employees.

An account was also provided of the plan for the operations of the Cambiano, Grugliasco, San Giorgio Canavese and Bairo factories for the next three years. The start-up of production of the new 2008 model year Ford Focus Coupé-Cabriolet was also confirmed for late January, with vehicles being launched in European markets from late Spring 2008. The Company emphasised the fact that no excesses of Pininfarina’s direct workforce were envisaged. Reduction of the structural costs foreseen in the agreement signed at the end of 2006 would be pursued.