Mosca celebrates 55 years: Together into the digital future

Mosca's success story began in 1966 with company founder Gerd Mosca working in a two-man operation with the first bundle-tying machine. The conventional string was soon replaced by more economical and robust plastic strapping. This required new technologies and gave birth to the first of many innovations that have kept Mosca at the forefront of the world's strapping industry for 55 years. The company's headquarters buildings in Waldbrunn were completed in 1983 and have since served as the centre of operations for the globally active company with 24 subsidiaries in 17 countries. Mosca celebrated its 50^th anniversary five years ago with 850 employees, today this number has grown by 17% to 1,000. Sales figures in the same period have increased by around 30%.

Mosca became a pioneer in the strapping industry thanks to the company's innovative approach and persistent efforts to break new ground in search of the best possible solutions for its customers. On the occasion of the company's anniversary, CEO Simone Mosca emphasised that "this is only possible with outstanding employees and trust in each other as well as confidence in the strength of our company." These principles continue to define Mosca as a family business. They also form the basis for a new corporate structure as well as investments in training, new products and services.

First chief executive outside the family

As the third chief executive officer alongside Timo and Simone Mosca, Alfred Kugler has played a key role in shaping the Mosca corporate strategy since mid-2018. He has held a management position at Mosca since 2009 and is now the first chief executive outside the family responsible for the company's commercial and business divisions: Service, Marketing and Sales. Among other achievements, the ONE Service concept, which ensures customers receive the same high-quality service worldwide, was established under his leadership. Kugler explains: "We have expanded our sales structure in recent years, primarily with international branch offices. In the last three years alone, we have set up five new subsidiaries in France, Hungary, Japan, Brazil and Singapore." More new subsidiaries are planned for 2021.

New corporate structure

International cooperation has been strengthened by the new holding structure. Since the beginning of this year, Mosca has set up an overarching group company with several subsidiaries. CEO Timo Mosca describes the new structure: "From Germany to Japan, all employees follow the same concepts and processes. They also engage in knowledge sharing. This is how we create the same conditions at all sites worldwide and work together as a team with a common self-image." This self-image is defined in the Mosca corporate strategy, mission, vision and values, which were developed by the employees themselves over the past few years.

Mosca has also worked on the further development of its brands. The recently introduced ONE Service concept was preceded by the introduction in the past decades of the unique SoniXs ultrasonic technology and the GET Inside sustainability label. At the same time, Mosca is developing its own digital brand. The corresponding brand logos were recently revised to give these formative innovations more recognition outside the company. Alfred Kugler explains the idea behind the redesign: "The Mosca brand concept reflects our corporate philosophy. Our logos and the concepts behind them are brought together in a recognisable way with each retaining its own unique character."

Focus on digitalisation, end-of-line solutions and sustainability

Mosca plans to continuously optimise the availability and use of strapping machines and systems in the future by implementing digital applications. "Our focus is on how we can improve processes at the customer's site and in our company through digital solutions," says Timo Mosca. This includes automatic reordering of consumables as well as location-independent monitoring of machine and system parameters to detect any problems at an early stage or to prevent them with the help of remote maintenance.

To offer more added value in end-of-line solutions, Mosca recently acquired the Spanish company Movitec and thereby added stretch wrappers to its portfolio. Simone Mosca explains: "By combining stretch wrapping and strapping, we guarantee product protection against moisture or dirt and ensure transport security with outstanding stability – and the lowest possible material consumption. This is an efficient and sustainable solution that is fully in line with our corporate vision." Sustainability has been a top priority at Mosca for years. In 2021, the company will publish its first sustainability report outlining, among other things, energy-saving production methods and eco-sustainable strap manufacturing that includes renewable raw materials.

Skilled workers for the future

At Mosca, sustainability includes eco-friendly production as well as staff retention and well-trained employees. Founded in 2018, the Mosca Learning Factory serves as a common training environment for all apprentices and students. In addition to training in machine-based material processing, the young workers are involved in customer orders at an early stage. The concept is so successful that other companies have asked Mosca if they can send their apprentices to Waldbrunn for advanced training. New agreements on remote working allow employees to work flexibly from home, depending on the specific projects and work phases.

Mosca sees the key to future success in its employees. Timo Mosca: "We have achieved a lot over the past five years with our well-trained and reliable employees worldwide and we have come through the pandemic very well so far. In the next five years, we want to work together to successfully develop digitalisation, Industry 4.0 and sustainability with new solutions for our customers."