1. INTRODUCTION

This report reflects the activity and the results of the UTILBEN Group in 2023. Through this report, we wish to convey as openly as possible how we respected our purpose, vision, mission and values in the past year. The Sustainability Report represents a way to evaluate the results and the progress of our company, as well as to communicate them openly to the general public.

The UTILBEN Group recorded an increase in turnover of 26% compared to the previous year, meaning a turnover of 27.96 million euros. This report contains information about the company’s organizational culture and the UTILBEN Group’s contribution to the well-being of society. 

The UTILBEN company was founded in 2006 by the married couple Ruben and Oana Marian. Integrity and character are the foundation of this organization, therefore UTILBEN became an entrepreneurial benchmark and has a profound positive impact on society. Proof in this respect is that UTILBEN donates 1% of its annual turnover.

The UTILBEN Group is one of the industry’s leaders in Romania in matters of agricultural and construction equipment thanks to a unique ecosystem of products, services and technology, which is intended to offer the best customer experience in the industry. The UTILBEN Team consists of 120 employees and the company has 4 branches in Cluj, Bucharest and Iași.

UTILBEN’s products and services: new and second-hand agricultural and construction equipment supply, equipment rental, workshops, mobile service fleet, attachments, spare parts, financing and consulting. The www.utilben.ro website holds over 30,000 products, from heavy equipment to attachments and spare parts.

CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT MARKET IN 2023

The year 2023 was a generous one for the Romanian industry, especially if we take into account that approximately 3,800 construction equipment were sold. Also, the volume of industrial construction works is a very important indicator for the economy of our country thanks to the 14% increase compared to the previous year.

The evolution of the construction sector was mainly supported by investments in infrastructure and by government and European funds. 27% of the money given through The National Recovery and Resilience Plan goes to building highways and railways. All of these require modern equipment and innovative technology.

2. LEADERSHIP MESSAGE

Ruben Marian, founder and CEO of UTILBEN

2023 was a challenging year for the UTILBEN Group, so now we look back with gratitude and we thank God for every achievement.

This year, the UTILBEN Group is going through a significant consolidation stage. We want to influence the society and leave a lasting legacy. We do this through the support we give to our clients so that they can build a better world with the help of heavy equipment and technology.

UTILBEN was not and is not an easy journey. We were willing to sacrifice the immediate winning in favor of the sustainable growth of our company. It took a lot of hard work, perseverance and patience to build a trusted brand. Of course, we will not stop here and our journey towards continuous performance goes on at a fast pace, as before.

We have built a successful Romanian brand based on principles and values that define us and guide us in business: problem solving, innovation and a job well done. Trust is the foundation of the company UTILBEN and compliance with business ethics allowed us to have a healthy development.

Operational excellence and investments in services that support our clients are the driving force of our national expansion strategy. We dream big. We wish to see our country transformed through business done with integrity and character. We want a Romania where entrepreneurship has a transformative impact and contributes to revitalising communities and poverty eradication.

We focus on collaboration and cooperation between business people, suppliers and clients so that Romania becomes recognized worldwide as a supportive business environment. Our vision is to develop the national entrepreneurial system, not just the UTILBEN Group.

We do this in order to contribute to the sustainable growth of Romania and in the hope of a better future, based on the certainty that having faith and obeying God produces real positive changes in our society.

3. ABOUT UTILBEN GROUP

PURPOSE

To inspire people to integrate Christian values in their business for the betterment of society.

VISION

Emerging markets transformed by our presence.

MISSION

To create a unique ecosystem of products, services and technology that offers our clients the best experience in the industry.

VALUES

Problem solvers. We leave no problem unsolved. We are dedicated to finding in maximum 24 hours the solution to any problem our clients encounter.

Trust. We are honest and we always tell the truth, so that a person remains our client for at least 20 years.

Innovation. We are constantly improving ourselves and invest in the latest technology in order to improve our customers’ experience.

3.1. BUSINESS UNITS

• Construction equipment
• Agricultural equipment
• Equipment rentals
• Attachments
• Spare parts
• Service

3.2. UTILBEN BRANCHES

UTILBEN Cluj-Napoca Branch

Address: Muncii Boulevard, number 36, city of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj county

Phone: 0733 040 000

Email: [email protected]

UTILBEN Baciu Branch

Address: Transilvaniei Street, number 446, town of Baciu, Cluj county

Phone: 0733 040 000

Email: [email protected]

UTILBEN Bucharest Branch

Address: Ithaca Street, number 400, town of Bolintin-Deal, Giurgiu county

Phone: 0733 040 000

Email: [email protected]

UTILBEN Iași Branch

Address: Transagropolis Street, number 4, town of Lețcani, Iași county

Phone: 0733 040 000

Email: [email protected]

15 mobile units in the service fleet

4. EVOLUTION JOURNAL

4.1. TURNOVER

4.2. KEY MOMENTS

2006 - UTILBEN was founded

2007 - first heavy equipment sale

2012 - first million EURO

2013 - first 10 employees

2015 - opening of the Cluj-Napoca branch

2017 - Sunward heavy equipment official importer

2021 - opening of the Bucharest branch

2021 - opening of the Baciu branch

2022 - first 100 employees

2022 - opening of the Iași branch

5. DIRECT INVOLVEMENT IN THE MARKET

Over 25 electric heavy equipment sold in 2023

Reducing polluting emissions is a planetary subject that cannot be postponed anymore. Global warming is just one of the effects of pollution and change is in our hands. UTILBEN contributes to the elimination of greenhouse gases by encouraging the acquisition of electric heavy equipment, that are non-polluting.

As a result, we have included in our portfolio a large selection of electric heavy equipment:

• Telehandlers
• Concrete pumps
• Screed pumps
• Excavators
• Scissor lifts
• Minidumpers
• Telescopic wheel loaders
• Electric forklifts

5.1. PRESTIGIOUS CLIENTS

• Agroind Cauaceu
• Aramis Group
• Autoklass Center
• Cerealcom Dolj
• Compania Națională de Administrare a Infrastructurii Rutiere
• Compania Națională de Căi Ferate CFR
• Compania Națională Loteria Română
• Kronospan Trading
• Promat Comimpex
• RCS & RDS
• Societatea Complexul Energetic Oltenia
• Societatea Națională de Gaze Naturale Romgaz
• Societatea Națională Nuclearelectrica
• Strabag
• Șantierul Naval Damen Galați
• Viterra Romania SRL
• ZES Zollner Electronic

5.2. UTILBEN TEAM

• 120 employees in total
• 60 new employees in 2023
• 33% of the new employees were recommended by our colleagues
• 2.400 candidates applied for a job at UTILBEN in 2023

5.3. SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

UTILBEN donates 1% of its annual turnover to charitable associations and supports Christian, educational, cultural, social, sports and leadership projects. Since its establishment, in 2006, UTILBEN has funded over 50 philanthropic organizations and religious units.

Among the beneficiaries, are Christmas Shoebox, Tășuleasa Social, Via Transilvanica, Let's do it Romania!, Swimathon and Walking Month. UTILBEN encourages its employees to develop their charitable side as well, hence every donation made by an employee is doubled by the company.

Furthermore, the UTILBEN team regularly participates in volunteer activities and, thus, personally supports various non-governmental organizations and charitable foundations. Teen Challenge, Star of Hope, Homes of Hope, Ecouri Verzi and Pas cu Pas are among the beneficiaries.

5.4. 2023

Last year, UTILBEN donated 180,000 euros to financially support 20 humanitarian, philanthropic, sports, apprenticeship and educational organizations. Furthermore, the UTILBEN Group supports different organizations through Form 230 by redirecting 3.5% of its income tax to them. Last but not least, the UTILBEN team attended 5 volunteer activities on company’s day.

5.5. CIRCULAR ECONOMY

UTILBEN contributes to the circular economy through the used equipment, rental and service business units. Specifically, selling used machinery means that they don’t reach the end of their life cycle after their first owner. Thus, the equipment is reused as long as they are in good working order.

The rental business unit falls within the circular economy by lending equipment. This means that a machine is used strictly as long as it is needed. Then, it passes on to the next user. The service business unit contributes to the circular economy by fixing equipment, which prolongs their life cycle.

Reusing, renting and servicing are 3 effective methods of avoiding waste generation and sustaining the circular economy.

6. OUR IMPACT ON THE BUSINESS LANDSCAPE

The UTILBEN Group aims to have a profound positive influence on society. That is exactly why we are committed to promoting and constantly supporting education, entrepreneurship and Christian values.

We want to be a benchmark for the business environment by the fact that we divert every year a minimum of 10% of our profit or 1% of our turnover to finance charitable initiatives and social projects. The UTILBEN team is no different and wants to be a standard, by supporting through volunteering organizations and NGOs that help disadvantaged people.

We double the donations that any UTILBEN employee makes so that we encourage others to do likewise. Our company wants to be an academy of characters, through our mentoring and leadership programs that aim to promote not only generosity, but personal and professional growth.

UTILBEN’s vision is extensive and it focuses on employees’ health, civic spirit and promoting a business environment based on principles and high values. Through everything that we do, we pledge to be an example of ethics and performance in order to contribute to a prosperous, balanced and thriving society.

GUILD Leaders

Ruben Marian, the CEO and founder of UTILBEN, is also the co-founder of GUILD Leaders. GUILD Leaders is a community of professionals and entrepreneurs that promotes personal, professional and spiritual growth and contributes to a positive change in society.

GUILD Leaders’ vision is for Romania to be transformed and every GUILD member to become an agent of change. The components of this community want to be artisans of a better future, in which Romania has a high quality of life and becomes a desirable country from all points of view.

GUILD Leaders’ mission is to build a strong and close-knit community whose members assist each other in personal, professional and spiritual growth. The GUILD Leaders are an example of responsible leadership, based on integrity, transparency and professional skills.

GUILD Leaders’ values are excellence, trust, dialogue and contribution. The GUILD members are passionate about their activity and, thus, they have a positive impact on the lives of those around them. The GUILD leaders are transparent and they often learn more from their failures than from successes. The components of this community respect each other and openly debate personal beliefs in a safe and trusted environment. They share their own experience and resources with others so that they can all grow together.

7. TOP-PERFORMING BUSINESS UNITS

The construction equipment business unit has grown by 101% compared to 2022.

The agricultural equipment business unit has grown by 10% compared to 2022.

The attachments business unit has grown by 20% compared to 2022.

The service business unit has grown by 48% compared to 2022.

The rental business unit has grown by 44% compared to 2022.

8. CUSTOMER-FOCUSED

UTILBEN’s mission is to create a unique ecosystem of products, services and technology that offers clients the best experience in the industry.

How do we do this? Already, the products in UTILBEN’s portfolio ensure our clients a high degree of satisfaction, but this experience would not be complete without the connected services that we offer and the latest technology that we use. There is a close relationship between selling a product and the way we treat our clients after they buy heavy equipment, attachments or spare parts from us.

We are determined to go further than the supply of products and the provision of services. With the help of technology and the exceptional people in the UTILBEN team, we have created a complete ecosystem that is constantly developing and is based on excellence. This leads to the full satisfaction of our clients who benefit from the products and services in UTILBEN’s portfolio.

8.1. CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT

UTILBEN offers its clients complete solutions for the construction industry by providing a full range of new and used heavy machinery: construction, sorting and crushing, handling and lifting equipment.

8.2. AGRICULTURAL EQUIPMENT

UTILBEN supports Romanian farmers with new and used equipment for any type of agricultural work: tractors, combine harvesters, telescopic loaders, technological trailers, sprayers, manure spreaders, cesspool emptiers and hay balers.

8.3. TECHNOLOGY

We have partnered with Guide Tech, which is the exclusive representative of Leica Geosystems in Romania. Therefore, we can offer our clients machine control solutions that reduce operational costs, increase productivity and improve accuracy.

8.4. RENTAL

We provide our clients with 21 categories of rental machinery from which to choose and a fleet of over 80 construction, handling and lifting, as well as agricultural equipment. The vast majority of the machinery in the UTILBEN Rental fleet are brand new or are 1-2 years old. 

8.5. ATTACHMENTS

Heavy machinery are irrelevant without the attachments that make them indeed useful, so UTILBEN invested in the development of this business unit. Our company has partnered with internationally renowned manufacturers so that our clients benefit from a wide selection of high-quality attachments.

8.6. SPARE PARTS

Any agricultural or construction equipment will need, at a certain point in time, spare parts. From filters to oils and essential components. Therefore, UTILBEN has in its portfolio multi-brand spare parts, both original and after-market, in order to answer the needs of all the clients in the industry.

8.7. SERVICE

UTILBEN Service means over 30 professional mechanics, 3 modern workshops and top-class equipment. We do mechanical, hydraulic and electrical repairs, paint and bodywork, diagnosis and maintenance. UTILBEN’s technicians have vast experience in the field of heavy machinery, which guarantees our clients the best results.

8.8. SERVICE FLEET

UTILBEN has a fleet of 15 service cars ready for emergencies or for interventions that do not require bringing the client’s heavy equipment to one of our workshops. Depending on the needs of our clients, we offer solutions for commissioning heavy machinery, maintenance and diagnosis.

8.9. FINANCING

We offer our clients support in obtaining grants for the acquisition of new heavy equipment, expert advice for the dossier preparation to access government or European funds, as well as preferential financing conditions.

8.10. CONSULTING

Regardless of the information our clients need, UTILBEN’s specialists have all the answers. We offer consultancy in choosing the right heavy equipment in accordance with the specific needs of our clients, we make sure that the attachments and the spare parts are compatible with our clients’ heavy machinery and we provide them with specialized technical support.

9. WHAT WE AIM FOR

By the year 2025, we intend to open UTILBEN subsidiaries in Timișoara and Craiova, in addition to the 4 branches we have in Cluj, Bucharest and Iași. Moreover, we want our service response to be a maximum of 24 hours, no matter the place in Romania where we receive the request.

By the year 2029, we plan to expand internationally and open UTILBEN subsidiaries in Ukraine, Bulgaria, Moldova and Serbia. Furthermore, we intend to have separate branches for the agricultural equipment business unit, with showrooms, service and stocks of spare parts. In addition, we want to attract premium heavy equipment brands and establish new business units: municipal, recycling, mining, school for machinery operators, UTILBEN Finance.

By the year 2031, the plan is to launch products under our own brand and expand our activity in the Middle East and North Africa. Moreover, we want to create our own network of spare parts and attachments stores. Ultimately, we wish to acquire other companies and list the UTILBEN Group on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

10. CHALLENGES, ACHIEVEMENTS AND BUSINESS OBJECTIVES

10.1. CHALLENGES

The main challenge of 2023 was increasing the team by 60 members. The pleasant surprise was that 33% of them came from recommendations from our current employees. The message we got from this statistic is that people inside UTILBEN trust this company and they proved this by promoting our organization to those close to them.

UTILBEN supports and encourages performance, the proof being that 2.400 candidates applied for a job in UTILBEN last year alone. We picked the best 60 of the best and we will invest in their personal growth and their professional development.

10.2. ACHIEVEMENTS

The UTILBEN Group ended 2023 with a turnover of 27.96 million euros, which represents an increase of 26% compared to the previous year. This positive evolution is mainly due to the optimization of our activity and the processes we use. The driving force was the sale of heavy equipment and attachments for the construction sector, two business units that have seen an increase of 52% from 2022.

10.3. OBJECTIVES

Commitment to sustainability

We focus on consolidating and expanding our operations in order to grow the capacity of providing UTILBEN products and services so that we can meet the growing demand for heavy equipment. At the same time, we develop sustainable strategies and practices to minimize the impact that we have on the environment. 

Developing our own system

UTILBEN is developing its own complex system of processes and procedures, including business intelligence solutions that help us manage our operations in an effective manner. In addition, this system allows us to make informed decisions and our business strategy to be based on concrete information.

Digitalization and automation of business processes

Digitalization and automation are essential for the progress of a company in the age of technology. UTILBEN’s evolution depends on these two factors and the digitalization and automation of the key business processes are needed to optimize operations, eliminate errors and increase productivity.

Regionalization and development of branches

UTILBEN is in a full process of expansion on a national scale and is focusing on the development of the Cluj, Bucharest and Iași subsidiaries. Our expansion aims to important parts of our country so that we can be as close as possible to our clients and offer them prompt service and reliable equipment.

Investing in people

We constantly invest in our team which consists of over 120 employees and actively contribute to their personal and professional development. We offer them all the resources they need and the necessary training in order to become real specialists in the industry and to improve their professional performance.