The Company

Productive and Commercial Structure

Production Process

 

Manufacturing facility

We have a manufacturing plant in Bento Gonçalves, RS, with a built-up area of approximately 50 thousand m² and an average production capacity of 70,000 PEUs per month. Each PEU is formed, on average, by 7 composable parts, such as sides, bases, shelves, tops and hardware.

Our manufacturing facility has two plants one for the manufacturing of products for the Dell Anno and Favorita brands and the other for the production of products for the New and Casa Brasileira brands.

Our plants feature state-of-the-art technology and a versatile production model, which allow us to manufacture products only after orders have been placed while still delivering them quickly (no later than 15 days per order), making it possible to maintain low inventory levels of finished products.

 

Product research and development - (R&D)

Unicasa’s product development process permeates all areas of the company, seeking a systemic vision and everyone’s commitment to the creation, development and launch of products from its four brands: Dell Anno, New and Casa Brasileira, in addition to corporate and export projects.

The Product area is divided between Research & Development and Product Engineering. A structure that proposes a greater synergy between the areas of creation and development. The Research & Development area works in the specification, creation and development of furniture, accessories and finishing products, proposing solutions that link aesthetics and functionality to the product, considering the profile of each consumer.

All product demand input is directed to the Research & Development area, that manages and conducts the product development process, passing through Engineering, which seeks to technically validate all projects and which is part of a multidisciplinary group that analyzes the viability of the projects, finishing the maintenance and launching of a product or a collection.

The company carries out market research, visits to national and international fairs, consultations on restricted access trends website, partnerships with stylists and suppliers in the fashion business, research with the store network, and opportunities raised by its internal sectors, which undergo evaluations carried out by the technical areas.

 

Production process

 

The simplified flowchart below shows the production process through the arrival of our products to Exclusive Dealers and Multibrand Sales Points:

The production process starts with the development of projects in Exclusive Dealers, made by architects or technicians with dedicated software (Promob). Customers actively participate in the project conception and in the choice of products that will be part of the room they are working on. For this reason, and in order to prepare qualified service and sales teams, we provide a training support structure to the Dealers of our products through "Unicasa Training", which offers guidance on products and project development, furniture module assembly, post-sales, people and business management.

After completing the project development stage, the Exclusive Dealership forwards the customer orders to our sales area, along with the respective projects that, after the system processes them, will start our production plans.

The next step after ordering and project submission, when applicable, is the forwarding of client orders to our Production Control and Logistics (Controle de Produção e Logística, or CP&L) area to construct the production plans utilizing our integrated manufacturing systems. These systems issue purchase orders for raw materials, accessories, packaging, and other materials to be used in the manufacturing of the products included in client orders and develop an adequate production plan in order to minimize input losses and ensure timely shipping of products, improved cost control and optimized planning for the use of resources.

As a rule, all suppliers must meet the deadlines for the supply of raw materials and inputs used in our production process. Notwithstanding, there are minimum inventory policies to ensure our customers’ demands can be met for many months.

After the drawing up of production plans, the production of Modules begins, and consists of the following stages: cutting, finishing, drilling, stocking, packaging and shipping in four production centers as described below:

• Cutting Center: Consists of cutting machines that cut MDF and MDP sheets used for producing Modules.
• Finishing Center: Consists of forming and edge banding machines that perform grooving, lowering, edge banding and finishing of MDF and MDP sheets used for manufacturing Modules (45°, beveling forms).
• Drilling Center: Consists of fully automated drilling machines which perform many types of drilling in MDF and MDP sheets used for preparing Modules. This is the last stage of parts processing.
• Packaging Center: Consists of sorting conveyor belts on which parts and components are sorted to compose the Module to be packaged and forwarded for shipping.

In the packaging center, Modules are monitored through optically scanned bar codes affixed during the production process, allowing us to control orders ready for shipping. In the shipping area, the monitoring of Modules is done through optical scanning when products are shipped to Dealers and shopkeepers. In June 2011, an optical bar code scanning system was also deployed in Exclusive Dealers and Multibrand Sales Points to check all Modules received and verify their compliance with orders sent to the factory.

Currently, 97% of the products in the portfolio, excluding resale items, are produced at the Company’s manufacturing facilities. The remaining products comprises: special parts, such as parts with special finishing and measurements outside the parameters met by the factory equipment.

We have one of the most advanced technologies for painting wood available on the market, originating from the automotive industry, the Company’s lacquer painting line has enabled us to meet a growing demand for painted furniture. We started to offer a wider range of colors, reduce the delivery time (approximately 45 days) and deliver a product with superior quality. Production started in 2013. In 2014, due to the growing demand, we invested around R$3 million and purchased another machine for the painting line. The line has the capacity to paint 200 m² of wood per day.

We control the production flow to optimize the use of machines and labor, allowing periodic maintenance to be scheduled in advance and with no interferences to the production schedule. We use Apontamento Web, which allows, tracking of parts during the production process in real time, ensuring proper management of materials and people involved in the process. Additionally, we constantly work in the Methods and Processes and Product Engineering areas to develop new production flows and to promote changes to the layout of production units, seeking to increase productivity.

Our industrial park has modern machines and equipment, which were acquired from widely recognized global suppliers in the industry. We are focused on serving the market, with high quality, commitment to delivery schedules and low production costs. Investments are directly aimed at improving the quality of products, making the production chain more flexible, reducing costs (inventories of finished products and products in development) and minimizing losses. Expenditure on fixed assets (CAPEX), on investments and intangible assets in 2021, 2020 and 2019 were R$31.60 million, R$7.20 million and R$3.86 million, respectively. The installed capacity used in 2021, 2020 and 2019 was 73.8%, 65.98% and 70.7% respectively.

 

Brands

The Company’s brands were created according to different positioning among themselves, which follow a unity of language between the products offered, points of sale, training and advertising suited to the consumption profile of each target audience, considering the segments to which they are intended. The marketing strategy involves the brands presence in their digital channels and social networks and exposure in online and offline specialized media – our presence is digital and printed in the national architecture and decoration media. Furthermore, we participate in fairs and exhibitions in the segment to promote the Company’s brands and products. Twice a year we present a new campaign for the collection launch of each brand.

As a marketing strategy for Dell Anno, Unicasa’s Premium brand, we present the dialogue between fashion and architecture, an exclusive positioning that distinguishes the brand in the national furniture market. The brand has a contemporary and distinctive version of products, similar to minimalist European standards. We can see fashion readings on its surfaces and complements, even dialoguing with stylists, who sign products in exclusive partnerships. The connections of these two universes are the north of all the brand’s marketing and catalog production work. In 2020, a pandemic year, Dell Anno once again distinguished itself in the segment by presenting its Manifesto Collection launch in an event broadcasted via Instagram, held simultaneously by the brand’s channel and three other channels of major national decoration titles. The Manifesto Collection rescues the freedom and cultural effervescence climate and behavioral changes that arose after the First World War and relies on manifestations of fashion, music, art, architecture and design to shape the new set of furniture through exclusive finishings.

Dell Anno works very closely with architects and interior designers, and also invests in national decoration shows such as Casa Cor, creating differentiation and connection with this audience.

New, aimed at the smart use of spaces with practicality and style, focusing mainly on the needs of the middle-class family, relies on a portfolio of surfaces and complements with a flexibility of creative solutions for projects. The marketing strategy is the reinterpretation of the light urban style, aimed at solving spaces in a smart way. The brand counts with model Rodrigo Hilbert as the symbol of a practical and resolved modern man. The appeal around the character permeates the product catalogs, marketing materials and social media presence.

Finally, Casa Brasileira, with a leaner and more economical product positioning, makes the dream of planned furniture more accessible and possible. The brand’s main strength lies in the consumer’s relationship within the POS - the communication elements connect to the product to inspire decision-making and the consumer is led to take a supporting role in the elaboration of their project, circulating between environments and products of the line close to real home contexts. In addition to commercial appeals focused on prices and special purchase conditions, the marketing force relies on Brazilian elements and its language is close to the public. The approaches, especially in the digital environment, revolve around DIY (do it yourself), with recipes, decorating tips and simple home solutions.

A standardization process, allied with the marketing strategy of each of the brands, is adopted for Exclusive resales in terms of space design, product presentation and visual language, to allow consumers a differentiated shopping experience. In this sense, each Exclusive resale is planned according to a specific visual identity pattern, defined and managed by our architecture centers. This standardization includes a study of the facade, architectural design, visual signage and layout of environments, to enhance the consumer’s shopping experience.