After all our endeavours to achieve the consolidation of the new
industrial group MACPUARSA(MP), it is a great satisfaction for us today to see the results of
the work carried out over these past three years.
In accordance with the new European standards, MP can offer a competitive compact, integral range of Complete Lifts
with in-house R&D and manufacturing, which fully meets all new
market requirements, both with regard to quality and industrial
criteria.
Additionally, in our quest to compete successfully in all our
markets, we are reinforcing our component ranges to provide effective
solutions and to meet the requirements of our customers around
the world.
I should therefore like to express my gratitude to the entire
MP team, suppliers, customers, and banking and public entities for
the enormous effort you have put into making possible this new
idea of a company ready to take on the challenge of the next millennium
and to continue investing and researching to ensure future success.
Yours sincerely,
Gonzalo de Madariaga Parias
President of MACPUARSA
PRESENTING MACPUARSA
THE ORIGINS OF MP
The company that today is MacPuarsa grew out of the merger of two
pioneering firms in the manufacture of lift components.
MAC was founded in 1972. Up until 1988 its business turned around
the manufacture of small mechanical components (semiautomatic
door checks, rope sockets, guide shoes, retiring ramps) and a
few magnetic and electrical parts. In 1989, when our chairman,
Gonzalo de Madariaga Parias, came into the company on completing
his studies in Industrial Engineering, and following a few uncertain
attempts at various industrial activities that had to be dropped
after a few months, the company finally focused its attention
on the development of electronic equipment for lifts. Research
and development efforts led to a pre-assembled electrical installation
kit for lifts, which put us in a firm market position. It was
then that we decided to go into making complete lifts.
PUARSA began in 1976 as a manufacturer of semiautomatic doors
and succeeded in capturing a large market share (40,000 units
per year). After signing an agreement with Selcom Italy, they
began making automatic doors and door operators. The agreement
was terminated in 1985 and PUARSA decided to go into the market
for complete lifts. By 1989 their annual production was 1800 units.
THE MP PROJECT
The idea behind MP arose out of PUARSA's need to find a partner
to complement its technology and management. The incorporation
of a group of people eager to do new things, who liked being part
of a team and enjoyed their work, led to the success of our ambitious
goals. MacPuarsa is now three years old and we can say that we
are in the best possible situation to enter the second phase of
technological integration which will which will give MP a leading
position among the non-installer manufacturers of complete lifts.
MP has opted decisively for technological growth and targets 3%
of its sales to R&D in four areas:
Electronics.
We are in the forefront of a new generation of control systems
that combine recent advances in telecommunications with an optimum
performance/volume/cost ratio.
In the area of power electronics we have developed a range of
frequency changers, which we envisage as an inseparable part of
lift control systems.
We have also actively engaged in the development of small electromechanical
parts for shaft installation, particularly those visible to lift
users, such as control stations and indicators, where we bring
design and performance together. Our Diginorte plant in Porto,
Portugal, is an able, efficient partner in this work.
Mechanical Components. This year we have undertaken major improvements at our plant to
raise our quality and cost standards in mechanical components,
which will put us on a sound competitive footing in this market.
We have added another 2000 square metres to our facilities and
bought new equipment, including a machining centre and a numerically
controlled lathe. This year we released a completely new item:
a new machine (the PM machine) that covers the range up to 600 kg and 1.6 m/s. In safety
components, we are currently in the process of adapting to the
requirements of the new directive.
Steel Plate. Following the consolidation of our Saragossa plant, we set up
an R&D team to look at new developments in this area. Together
with the investments planned for the next few years, this work
will bring our steel-plate components—doors, cars, frames and
supporting structures—up to the same standard as our competition.
Complete Lifts. This is a service technology; the idea behind the manufacture
of a complete lift is to provide a comprehensive service to operators
by supplying the total package, from the initial design all the
way up to the commissioning papers, in a very short time. Our
technology has developed to the point where we can market a unique
complete lift package that includes all components.
COMPLETE LIFTS AND COMPONENTS
MP also intends to enhance their presence in the installation and
modernization markets, as suppliers of complete lifts for new
buildings and parts for modernizing existing installations. We
can offer a complete lift as a fully integrated, highly competitive
product, and our aim is to achieve maximum productivity in shaft
installation. With regard to lift modernization, our R&D goal
is to develop components which are adaptable to very specific
needs and demands.
SALES NETWORK
Our sales-expansion policy is based on the idea of creating our
own sales network through what we have called Sales and Technical
Outlets (STO).
In the domestic market these operate as branches, while in the
international market they are companies in which we always hold
a majority share, while providing an opportunity for partners
who contribute value added in technical, production or sales areas.
Our aim is for these STOs to work as efficiently as our central
offices in providing service for complete lifts. To this end,
the Commercial Department will implement a decentralization plan
to pool all the company's resources in the areas of sales, marketing,
organization and image.
In recent years sales networks have been set up in Barcelona,
Madrid, Valencia and Bilbao, and MP now has companies in Portugal, Germany, Holland, the UK, Brazil,
China, Greece and Austria. Plans for companies in Thailand, Italy
and Turkey are currently underway.
Today we market our products in 60 countries. Our medium-term
goal is to export 80% of total sales.
QUALITY
In 1996 MacPuarsa obtained the ISO 9001 quality certification with TÜV. We are now
in the process of implementation and certification in the remaining
group companies, especially those working in manufacture and assembly,
such as Diginorte in Portugal and MacHellas in Greece.
The Quality Assurance Department at MacPuarsa is cooperating with lift-installing companies to help them implement
quality assurance programmes in order to facilitate a process
which, if not approached properly, can be more lengthy and costly
than need be.
Throughout the current year we have organized a series of meetings
at our branch offices to discuss our interpretation of the new
European directive covering lift design and commissioning, and
the needs arising from the implementation of quality assurance
systems. These meetings have also provided us with input from
the lift installers who have collaborated with us, which has helped
clarify our approach.
Finally, a word about the outstanding quality and commitment of
our personnel, who are our company's greatest asset. God willing,
we hope to make MP a real family where we all strive to do things
better every day, and we want to make our customers and suppliers
aware of this.
Products 
Dear Friends,
Our sales-expansion policy is based on the idea of creating our
own sales network through what we have called Sales and Technical
Outlets (STO).
In 1996 MacPuarsa obtained the ISO 9001 quality certification with TÜV. We are now
in the process of implementation and certification in the remaining
group companies, especially those working in manufacture and assembly,
such as Diginorte in Portugal and MacHellas in Greece.