This blog is translated from German with DeepL.
In the literal sense, innovation = renewal. But it also means invention in the sense of ideas. Avant-garde, in turn, actually means “vanguard”, but often means the product of a completely new approach. Primarily used in the arts. We transfer it to “engineering art”.
In recent years, the topic of innovation has increasingly become the focus of public attention. No wonder, since innovative ability is considered a competitive factor, which determines success and failure in the constantly changing market. Those who miss trends lose valuable market share.
But what does innovation mean? The definitions are manifold. For our understanding, the following applies: Innovation requires creative ideas (the intention), from which a new product emerges (the invention). But only when this product conquers the market (the diffusion), one speaks of an innovation. So innovation requires not only good and creative ideas, but also the right market and its successful penetration.
Many companies use the self-description “innovative” for marketing purposes. They hope to gain new customers and orders. This is precisely why we refuse to use the term and prefer to use the word avant-garde. It is not enough just to write innovation on the banner. The basic idea of innovation must be understood and conditions must be created that favor the ability to innovate.
For us, it is important that the passion to create something new is lived out. This includes taking unconventional paths, exchanging ideas with as many people as possible from different areas of expertise, and thus recognizing potential. Failure is also part of the process if you want to move forward. If you fail early on in a project with your idea and have to look for new ways, you’ll move forward all the faster for it. Unfortunately, there is little understanding for this in our zero-error culture. In order to consciously promote innovation, a company should actively encourage employees to dare to do something and to believe in their own ideas – even if they may not look like innovation at first glance. In this way, good ideas are not nipped in the bud, but have the opportunity to develop.
As Gimelli Engineering AG, we approach new projects as openly as possible. With each new order, we check how much the topic of innovation is in demand. If our customer already has a precise idea of the end product, we choose a lean, goal-oriented approach. Demanding projects with imprecise objectives, but with a vision in the background, we treat in a differentiated way. From the beginning, we involve people with the best expertise, experience or personal interests in the field. The greater the diversity in the project team, the greater the chance of generating novel solutions. In the creative phase, we approach the topic very openly and try to gather as much input as possible and turn it into ideas. These are then systematically filtered, evaluated and sorted. From this, clear directions are derived.
In a second step, we focus all our energy on these selected ideas. It is clear that this innovation process can vary depending on the project and that an adequate approach must be chosen for each assignment. In this way, projects can be carried out quickly and efficiently, so that our customers reach their goals on time and on budget. This is the strength of Gimelli Engineering AG.
