ISTOBAL, a multinational group specializing in car wash and car care solutions, is optimistic about 2021 and plans to grow by more than 10 percent, driven by internationalization, innovation, and digital transformation. Over the course of this year, the Spanish company is continuing with its strategic growth plan and is confident that it will increase its sales after a 12 percent drop in turnover in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
ISTOBAL will increase its investment in RD&I by 11 percent this year compared to 2020 to boost its robotics lab and build on chemical product applications and new materials. It will also continue to develop its open innovation model, driving innovation from within and collaborating with universities, companies, technology centers, and startups to develop projects in the areas of vision and artificial intelligence, security systems, and robotics. Over the past five years, ISTOBAL has increased its investment in RD&I by 56 percent.
In addition, the group is committed to digital transformation as another strategic focus in the development of its business. In this regard, it promotes Big Data, IoT, and Machine Learning to implement Industry 4.0 solutions, as well as to optimize sector profitability and the experience of using and maintaining car wash equipment through its Istosmart by ISTOBAL connectivity system. The company continues to leverage cloud business solutions and data analysis and integration to improve efficiency and increase competitiveness.
By product divisions, rollovers continued to lead ISTOBAL’s sales, followed by jet wash facilities and the commercial vehicle range. However, chemical products, along with payment and connectivity terminals, were the lines with the highest sales growth in 2020.