After reading and being very very inspired by
@SussexEuroSOX 's post dedicated to Belgian lighting, i thought to myself that i could make one about Indal! Hence it's my favourite brand after all haha.
INDAL or "
Industrias
Derivadas del
Aluminio", was founded in 1949 in the city of Valladolid by the Arias brothers, Héctor Arias San Vicente and later Leopoldo Arias San Vicente as a company that focused on making printed aluminium name plates, the first ever sign of lighting products was in 1955 when the brothers experimented with making aluminium reflectors for street lights before entering the street lighting market itself, during a trip to the United States in 1957, Héctor was very impressed with the lighting in the country there compared to Spain during that time, later on in 1958 they designed the first street lighting aluminium reflector, the 400-OV, and so many more were released in the late 50s, after that, the name "INDALUX" was born, separating the industry between making plates (INDAL) and street lights and aluminium reflectors (INDALUX), in the early 1960s, Indal was a pioneer during its time being the first national manufacturer that obtained an aluminium reflector for street lighting in one piece and anodized that had unimaginable photometric results.
The 1950s and 1960s
1961 INDALUX catalogue representing Aluminium reflectors
In 1962, when fluorescent lights were the fashion, INDAL didn't dissapoint with various models for circular fluorescent tubes, used mainly for decorative, industrial and flood lighting purposes, the "P" Series model has been the most sold at that time with over 170.000 units being produced.
1968 INDALUX catalogue section showing the "P" Series
After Spain entered the United Nations in the late 50s and early 60s, it opted for an economic liberalization and opening, but INDAL still had dificulties with having import licenses and one of the required licenses was for electrical material.
Street light manufacturing needed a boost and recognition on the market, something that would make INDAL grow, and that happenned after the city of Madrid ordered INDAL with the manufacturing of street lights for the city in 1958, to greet the US President Dwight D. Eisenhower during his visit to Spain.
After this the general market in Spain boomed, the car factory SEAT was able to grow on sales with their new car (Seat 600) and Renault in Valladolid with their 4-4, and specially for INDAL, it was their opportunity to take their first steps into expansion.
Since 1962 INDALUX has also started producing lighting for gardens, with little lights that looked like mushrooms, apart from that INDALUX started making lights of different types of lighting depending on the occasion, the most significant model was the 400-S that, like i mentioned before, has a red mushroom-like canopy with white dots, exactly ressembling a mushroom.
1968 INDALUX section showing both garden fixtures, one of them being the 400-S
In the early 60s INDALUX also started finding a differnt tecnique of metal transformation, which that tecnique is extruded metal, this helped a lot when making fluorescent industrial/interior light fixtures, such as the "FLK" series models which were sold until 1983 with over 40.000 units produced.
1968 INDALUX catalogue front page
In 1967, the INDALUX 850-OVX street light started being produced with a molded inyected aluminium casing, inspired by the American cobraheads of the time.
1980 INDALUX catalogue showing the 850-OVX fixture
In 1969, INDAL opened its first delegation (office) in Madrid, that office will be the first stone of their expanding commercial network.
The 1970sIn 1970, INDAL started participating on the most popular trade fairs, such as Hannover, Paris, etc... Including EXPAL in Valladolid, which is a national expo dedicated to the aluminium in manufacturing, and INDAL being one of the main guests there.
Despite all the struggles of keeping the company running during the 50s and 60s, INDALUX started expanding its establishments, making new offices, exposition areas, labs and many more, until 1974 when the maint building had expanded very well.
In 1978, a new machine using high prssure inyected aluminium would be planned to be utilized, this being the main use to make street light casings for INDAL in the following years, for that reason, INDAL planned making a new establishment for such purpose in Valladolid.
THE BIG JUMP OF INDAL:During the 70s, INDALUX also had a decent marketing point towards Naval vessels, helping produce lighting appliances for Spain's newly built Aircraft Carrier, the "Principe de Asturias" R-11 and also for ferries at that time that were being built in Spain.
In 1976 INDALUX wanted to start their international implantation with Venezuela, with plans and projects to produce appliances in that country at that time, the ilusion and time that was invested in the project wasn't enough to continue working on such project.
During that era, INDALUX also had relations with Cuba for plans to produce fixtures for them.
1980sIn 1980, one of the founders of INDAL, Héctor Arias passed away unexpectedly the 21st of june of that year, but the start of the decade didn't mean there would be bad news, INDALUX started working on their new establishment in Valladolid, a plan that Héctor wanted to do before he passed away, used for high pressure aluminium injection helping and boosting the manufacturing process relatively higher. Work has already began on such establishment, which would be INDAL's main warehouse/factory until acquisition by Philips.
Images of INDALUX's new factory which would end up becoming signify's current factory to make LED fixtures.
In the 80s the comercial network in Spain has grown increasingly faster, competitivity has also grown with more brands entering the Spanish street lighting market between GE, Philips Ibérica S.A, Metal Mazda (Spanish subsidiary to Mazda Éclairage), Socelec and Carandini. After the Madrid office was opened, INDALUX added more offices to spread everywhere around Spain, Barcelona, Seville, Levante (1978), Galicia (1981) and Aragón (1982), marking a finishing success to the expansion on the commercial network for INDALUX.
From 1981 to 1983, INDALUX started producing fixtures for the Cuban market.
First deliveries to Cuba by INDALUX
INDAL stand in the Cuban trade fair, early 1980s
In 1984 INDAL exposes for the first time in the Hannover trade fair, their lighting products, along with the rest of the big companies that showcase such products, INDALUX never stopped attending to the Hannover fair, before starting to also get in the Light + building trade fair.
Between 1986 and 1987, INDAL started doing a few incentive trips to Cuba to transport workers to help export the deliveries better to the Caribbean island.
In the interior market, Indal has reaffirmed and strengthened the contract between Philips Ibérica S.A, comapny with also a vast variety of appliances, all manufactured by INDAL, with that Philips has constituted to be INDAL's most important client at that time because it bases its ranges on INDAL's manufactured fixtures.
1984 Philips Ibérica S.A Catalogue
With that, INDAL has helped Philips be positioned at the top of the national market in Spain. Adapting INDAL fixtures to the Philips catalogue such as the HNF-329 flood light, a rebranded INDALUX LECSO.
Comparison beteween the HNF-329 (1984 Philips Catalogue) and the LECSO (INDALUX 1980 catalogue)
As the decade of the 80s goes by, INDAL never misses the opportunity presented by the favorable winds blowing through the Spanish economy. At that time INDALUX started releasing a ton of models in the 1980s, IVA, IZA, LECSO, PRX, etc... Along with conquering new markets in: Morocco, Portugal, Belgium, continuation with Cuba, etc....
In 1984 INDAL installs the first numerical control machine, a punching machine (not the one that punches you) which revolutionized the way of working in the INDAL factory, in the following years, INDAL would incorporate with new numerical control machines of other types, 2D and 3D design systems and computing systems.
The Spanish market in the final years of the decade were influenced that would be prepared for the next decade, the 90s, the Universal Expo of Seville (1992) and the Barcelona Summer Olympics (1992) in which, through Philips Ibérica, they were able to install tons of their products there.
The 1990sAt the start of the decade, there was a demand that saturated INDAL, in the first months of the decade there has been special interests towards the production of the multinational sector by INDALUX, Philips joined with Siemens, with that in mind, that inspired INDAL to do the same and increase its productive capacity, coverting SAETA or "
S.
A Española de
Transformación del
Aluminio, current producer of aluminium casings, into a producer that doesn't just make aluminium pieces, but produce complete fixture casings, with parts machining systems, an automatic electrostatic painting installation and a color change system that represents a major advance in everything related to this surface treatment, also an assembly line and all the necessary elements for the integral manufacturing of fixtures, fundamentally for other brands.
SAETA Establishment, currently located close to the main INDAL/Signify factory in Valladolid
INDAL installs its second anodizing installation, an investment that has been done in 1989 that duplicates the capability of surface treatment and it improves it that would prevent saturation problems in INDAL's productive flow.
In 1991, the Portuguese subsidiary INDALUX EQUIPAMIENTOS ELECTRICOS LTDA was created, after the purchase of a participation in the old brand LUMITEL.
In 1992, both the EXPO 92' and the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona occured, which are the anteroom of an era of a severe ecnomical crisis that the entire Spanish industry suffered, and INDAL couldn't escape from it either, from 1992 to 1995, INDAL/INDALUX had years of management reorganization both at the industrial level and commercial level, adapting the new circumstances that prevail in the markets.
The economical crisis in Spain that lasted 4 years (1991-1994) has been very specially aggravated in INDAL's case, the fall of Cuba after the disappearance of the USSR, and Philips' change of product policy, disassociating with INDALUX, making the numbers on both main cases go down a lot, and that made INDAL make two big right decisions that would change the company's future.
INDALUX created a new policy of its own product development and own brand that would allow INDALUX to enhance the latter in the national market, which made INDAL make a lot of new products such as: ISR, IVH, IZX, IQC, IJP, IQD, etc... (in which the IVH and the IZX have won the Industrial design award from the Castile and León regional government in 1994)
INDALUX realized with such a variety, it would be better to invest in expanding internationally, knowing the national market wouldn't be enough for a company that wants to grow and expand further.
With that, after INDALUX's first subsidiary being born in Portugal, INDAL had a major oportunity in 1993 with Sp2 International Lighting Ltd. in Singapore, with an idea to attend the privileged country's markets from the far east.
Looking at the commercial ties with INDAL and Cuba after a long time weren't broken, and that INDALUX has had a nice prestige on the island, INDALUX has the plans on opening a commercial office in Cuba that can attend the still existing demand for lighting in the country that is growing slowly with the rythm of the tourist boom.
In the decade of the 90s, another unfortunate event occured, Leopoldo Arias San Vicente, the second person to found INDAL, passes away in 1995, along with his nephew, Leopoldo Arias Ruiz de Temiño in 1994, after these two events occured, INDAL could recover its current status with no problem.
Picture of the INDAL/INDALUX Factory circa 2000
In 1994 INDAL also obtained the ISO 9001 Certificate, being INDAL S.A, one of the first companies to obtain such a prestigious quality seal.
In 1995 and following, INDALUX initiated a new revolution in their productive system, a new flexible manufacturing that incorporates the "cell" concept, and since it has yielded good results from the beginning, the formalization of traditional practices is altered, conceiving a new layout of the plant that involves doubling their production capacity and raising productivity to levels far higher than those previously known.
The following years it becomes visible the South American market, where to date, INDALUX didn't have any presence, in 1996, INDALUX wins an international tender in Bolivia to produce fixtures for the city of Cochabamba, third most populated city in Bolivia.
The third international adventure for INDALUX was Brazil, making in 1997 Indal do Brasil Ltda, Brazilian subsidiary of INDALUX. In the same year, INDALUX took position in Colombia, with having presence in the Central-American market with Roy Alpha S.A, Colombian subsidiary of INDALUX.
During this decade, INDALUX has been presenting their brand on most trade fairs, showing success and fame in the company.
Expotecnia Sao Paulo, Brazil, 1996
La Habana trade fair, La Habana, Cuba, 1997
Hannover trade fair, Hannover, Germany, 1992
Argel trade fair, Argel, Argelia, 1991
In 1996 INDALUX planned on creating their second brand to the market, DC Iluminación (Which would later become 3e International), that would promote a new range of decorative fixtures, such as the Harmony range, flagship of DC Iluminación.
Order by the Mayor of Valladolid to DC Iluminación of custom-built masts for plazas around the city, with the Harmony Classique as the fixture.
Matelec 98' Trade fair, Madrid, Spain, 1998 Showing DC Iluminación products, very related to 3e International before the brand actually changed its name to 3e International.
In exactly the 18th of december 1998, Julio Arias, a person who worked very hard managing INDAL and INDALUX altogether since the death of his brother Leopoldo Arias Ruiz, had passed away due to severe sickness, but again, that wouldn't stop INDAL from continuing to grow, growing so big that in 1999, plans to create a group that would change the industry forever.
Hannover 99' trade fair, Hannover, Germany, 1999
In 1999, a holding by the name of Group/Grupo INDAL was created, formed under: INDALUX Iluminación Técnica S.L, Saeta Die Casting S.L, DC Iluminación Técnica S.L, and 4 foreign: INDALUX Equipamientos Eléctricos Ltda, SP2 Internacional Lighting Ltd, Roy Alpha S.A and Indal do Brasil.
GRUPO INDAL "El Indalecio" magazine, circa 1996.
The 2000sThe year 2000 would mark INDAL's 50th anniversary, 5 decades of struggle, marketing, producing and iluminating.
The INDAL GROUP would then continue expanding:
Sluz, interior lighting company located in Barcelona gets acquired in
2001 along with its French subsidiary, Sluz S.a.r.L
3e International, French distributor which would then be fusioned with DC Iluminación, gets acquired in
2002Industria Technische Verlichting B.V. or Industria for short, Dutch street lighting company gets acquired in
2006, along with
WRTL Exterior Lighting or WRTL for short (UK) and
Technilite (Belgium) as distributors
Claude Lefebvre and Jacqueline Reguer, French classical street lighting companies, acquired under 3e International for the INDAL GROUP that same year,
2006These are all the
Companies the INDAL GROUP acquired, but the group has also created small subsidiaries around Europe and Asia:
Indal C&EE, s.r.o. and
Indal Polska, Sp.zo.o, respectively Czech Republic and Poland, created in
2004 to supply the market in both countries
Indal China, created in 2005, being a representative office to supply the market for Asia
Indal Deutschland, GMBH, German representative office, created around the same years as the czech and poland offices
With the INDAL GROUP gathering 4 companies that produce fixtures just like INDALUX, the variety of fixtures of any occasion was guaranteed open, classical, decorative, functional, interior, projector lighting, garden lighting, architectural lighting, you name it!
All 4 companies mixed together, the Indal group would have around more than 100 products available!
In the decade, the INDAL GROUP would have the following companies/subsidiaries/offices:
Indalux Iluminación Técnica S.L(Spain)
Saeta Die Casting S.L (Spain)
Sluz S.L (Spain)
Indal C&EE, s.r.o. (Czech Republic)
Indal Polska, Sp.zo.o (Poland)
Indal do Brasil, Ltda (Brazil)
Indal Deutschland, GMBH (Germany)
Indal China representative office (China)
Indalux Equipamentos Eléctricos, Ltda (Portugal)
Sluz S.a.r.L (France)
Roy Alpha S.A (Colombia)
3e International S.A (France)
Claude Lefebvre (France)
Jackeline Reguer (France)
Industria B.V. (Netherlands)
WRTL Exterior Lighting (UK)
Technilite (Belgium)
Along with other distributors from INDALUX themselves under Abacus Lighting in the UK
Around the same year (2008) The old names of some companies would start to fade away, for example 3e International turned into Indal France and Indalux into Indal.
The 2010sIn the 2010s, LED lighting was starting to be the new fashion, and INDAL, as one of the top companies in the world has to do the big move, since most of INDALUX's products are HID fixtures, it wouldn't take long until the Indal group would take heavy losses if they don't do anything towards the boom in LED.
With the help of Philips, Indal was able to make a LED Street light to fulfill the basic requirements for efficiency, which was the
Stela, square urban fixture ideal for parks, small neighbourhoods and crosswalks. Indal starts getting a lot of sales as Philips becomes a
lifesaver to Indal, or so i thought.....
Not much after the Stela's release in 2010, around 2011-2012 Indal released the Luma street light, along with LED versions of older HID fixtures.
(Will continue in replies)
