43 fact that if the company receives a continuous reminder to change and update its goods and services from customers, suppliers, regulators and other entities, this requires planning targeted investments. Firstly, the entrepreneur and his technical working groups must identify what investments are needed and what is the average duration rate of use of the assets. As for interventions and services we refer to instrumentation, minor technical equipment, control equipment, while for production we focus on machinery and systems, such as automated warehouses. Acquiring a site or expanding an existing one, as well as searching for new spaces, are long-term forms of investment that require specific funding. Once the investment objectives have been defined, questions are raised about the best current formulas and concessions that allow their acquisition and use by the company. There are currently three main reference options: i) purchase, ii) leasing, iii) rental. What differentiates these options? What are their advantages and disadvantages and how can they be adapted to each individual company? Before considering the technical merits and examining the aforementioned options, the sustainability of the investments at an entrepreneurial level must be evaluated both from an economic and financial point of view. Operationally, it is important to understand whether the company can sustain the higher future depreciation and / or the higher rents as for profit and loss account, and whether the company is able to manage financial flows, usable both as initial availability and as future flows to sustain any financial impact and repayment of the medium-term lines used to finance the various investments. An investment must be evaluated from the point of view of its potential future benefits such as an increase in production efficiency, saving time and resources and improving results and quality of interventions. After the above analyses and the green light of the investments, which are thus considered sustainable, the relative examination of the possible alternatives follows. Technically the three options must be assessed from the point of view of presentation of the financial statements and related financial impact. For direct investments, in case of multi-year use assets, they will be recorded in the balance sheet assets and subject to depreciation, according to their technical economic life (for example, properties 30 years, plants and equipment between 8 or 10 years, means of transport 4 years). Direct investments are eligible for industry 4.0 protocols which give access to tax credit under certain conditions, and also for any non-repayable plant account contributions according to the various protocols of the PNRR, which will be the subject of future tenders. From a financial point of view, an investment can be supported by own capital, i.e. by using excess liquidity, in relation to the ordinary needs of working capital, or by a loan, if the periods coincide, given that these are medium-long term investments. The other negotiating elements are the interest rates and related hedges, guarantees and the applicability of the benefits of the Sabatini law, that is, a reduction in the interest rate account. The second option for the purchase of goods by leasing, according to Italian accounting principles, always provides for the registration of the investment in the form of fees recorded in the income statement, with the recording of only the residual redemption value in the assets at the end of the contract. Subsidies are applicable in this case too, as the leasing is considered the technical instrument which finances the investment, the underlying principles of which are the same as for a direct investment, i.e. the user tales all the risks and obligations related to managing the asset. Obviously, also in this case, the interest rates, costs and collateral must be negotiated with the financial counterparty. In case of construction of a building for the headquarters and offices leasing can be an excellent option to lighten current financial commitments, as it is essentially the leasing company that takes care of the advances on the works, transferring the finished asset to the user, once the construction is finished and when the asset is ready for use. As for the rental option, it can certainly be interesting from a flexibility point of view and as an applicable solution, but it does not allow to take advantage of the existing benefits, as the asset belongs to a third party, which rents it and will be transferred to the user only at the end of the contractual period. Until this step, the user is not making an investment, but only has the benefits of using the asset. This option is subject to the definition of economic elements such as duration and relative costs, the implicit financial costs and service costs made available by the owner. To have a common line of interpretation for the options, it should be remembered that the first two, i.e. direct investment financed by a mortgage or a medium-term loan, and leasing, are identified by the bank risk center system, while rental is not. In the event of business scenarios including a strong focus on industrial growth and on management of working capital lines, this tool could be functional to support investment schemes that do not interact with
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