Fabbriche Aperte LAB: the chemicals hub in Spinetta Marengo engages with the community

In 2022 the Fabbriche Aperte format brought a thousand people into the Syensqo factory (at the time Solvay) in Spinetta Marengo, with an event organised to illustrate results and current projects (click here for a description: https://www.amapola.it/project/solvay-fabbriche-aperte-2022/?lang=en). To give continuity to the initiative, for 2023 Amapola and Syensqo co-planned a new cycle of theme-based meetings on social responsibility and sustainable development for the local community: Fabbriche Aperte LAB. The factory doors opened once again to local stakeholders, to give them the opportunity to learn more about the company’s production operations, markets, technologies, innovation and environmental protection projects, but above all to interact with the people whose passion and expertise animate the factory.

Program details

From April to October 2023, 5 meetings were held in the factory: each event included a guided tour on a shuttle bus to the factory plants and departments, followed by a listening and engagement workshop, attended by a professional facilitator. The employees took part as tutors and guides, and were also involved in the workshops, after special training.

The program ended with a closing feedback event, at which the results of the initiative were presented, and future developments were announced.

The cycle of meetings was designed to encourage the visitors to offer project ideas to be assessed by the company as initiatives for joint development.

The Amapola project

The program provided a strategic opportunity for listening, communication and relationship building with internal and external stakeholders: internally, objectives, projects, results and corporate strategy were shared with employees to foster a sense of belonging; externally, engagement with the community was facilitated by highlighting value created and shared, and raising perception of transparency in the narration of the company’s projects.

Amapola assisted Syensqo with the planning of the “Lab”, providing support on the organisation of the project and management of strategy, facilitation and communication.

To optimise the workshops, expert facilitation training was organised for employees involved in the meetings and tours, using specialised techniques with the assistance of certified professional facilitators.

Amapola also handled the content and key messages of the meetings, working alongside the company, as well as the visual identity of the initiative and all communication materials (flyers, posters, invitations, digital cards, advertisements and editorials).

To create a record of the initiative, Amapola also produced a Diario di Bordo, a booklet logging the entire Fabbriche Aperte LAB journey. The Diario also presents the content event by event, with photos of the meetings and the comments of the participants. Similarly, the video report of the feedback event covers the whole program with testimonials from the people involved: employees and managers as well as residents and local dignitaries.

Read here the Diario di Bordo, the Logbook about Fabbriche Aperte LAB 2023

Go to the Fabbriche Aperte project file.​