Thinking outside the box Emmegi

emmegi Headquarters, Soliera (mo)

thinking outsidE thE box

Emmegi is one of the biggest players in the provision of cutting and milling machinery for aluminium, light alloys, PVC and steel. The company is part of the Cifin Group which, in the last few years, thanks to a few strategic acquisitions, has doubled its turnover and widened its geographical presence. Eugenia Fiusco spoke to Emmegi marketing director, Marco Bellucci, to find out more about its plans for the future.

Around 70 per cent of Emmegi’s products are destined for the door and window manufacturing industry, with aluminium processing machines contributing the most to turnover. The remaining 30 per cent of its output is sold to other industries, such as the furniture, lighting, pneumatic, rail, truck trailer and oil platform sectors.

What sets Emmegi apart from the competition is its wide range of products that can meet many different needs and budgets, along with a continuous commitment to the development of new solutions and providing all-round assistance.

“We have two main divisions – the cutting division and the milling division – each of which focuses on different lines that can serve small businesses in the private sector that are looking to invest a modest amount, all the way up to highly advanced CNC machines requested by clients working on larger scale projects, such as skyscrapers, that are ready to invest up to €500,000 for a piece of equipment. In between these two extremes, there are different options to suit many different clients,” said Mr Bellucci.

“Over the past 10 years we have been working to fill the gap in our offering by providing PVC processing machinery which, alongside aluminium, is widely used in the door and window industry,” explained Mr Bellucci.

Moreover, Emmegi supplies a comprehensive software package developed by its software house Emmegisoft – the FP SUITE – that can be customised to work in synergy with its machines. This package

emmegi Headquarters, Soliera (mo)

of software programs was developed exclusively to meet the needs of door and window makers and offers complete and integrated solutions for all operational areas, including sales, design, purchasing, production and administration.

“Our group is the leader in this niche industry, but such a great achievement would not have been possible without our serious commitment to and investment in research and development. It goes without saying that our suppliers are vital in ensuring the quality of the final product,” explained Mr Bellucci. Among Emmegi’s key suppliers are Harmonic Drive, SMC, Bosch Rexroth, SKF, Kennametal, Balluff and Reer. Recent investments and acquisitions

The past three years have been a period of incredible growth and investment for the Cifin Group. In 2014 Emmegi took over the Milanbased company Tekna, which was among the first companies in the sector to design, develop and sell CNC machining centres. Tekna has kept ahead of a fast evolving market with a series of innovative solutions, many of which are custom-designed around the requirements of individual clients. Emmegi acquired the brand and the technological know-how of this company.

In the same period Cifin Group has widened its range of final applications with the acquisition of Keraglass. “Keraglass is a small

marco Bellucci Keraglass Headquarters, Baiso (Re) Italy

The presentation, configuration and digital sales for the world of window and door

company located in the province of Reggio Emilia that was acquired by our holding group, but maintains its independent position on the market as a provider of glass processing solutions,” added Mr Bellucci. Glass was therefore added to aluminium, light alloys, iron and PVC to complete a production range and commercial network that is now operating across five continents.

But the historical acquisition that has seen Cifin Group double its turnover and workforce took place in January 2016, when it won the bid to acquire the German group Elumatec – previously the biggest competitor of Emmegi. Elumatec boasts an established presence in the PVC industry, a workforce of roughly 700 people and a projected turnover of approximately €125 million, of which about €100 million comes from foreign markets. It is easy to see how this event represented a huge win for the group.

“Emmegi and Elumatec will be controlled by our holding company, with a combined workforce of around 1200 people, achieving a total turnover of roughly €240 million,” stated Mr Bellucci. “However, they are still operating as competitors on the market. We are now considering and exploring the ways in which the two groups could work more in synergy through an exchange of technology and optimisation of components.”

Diversification is the key

From the above, it is clear to see that Cifin is a group that is not scared of taking on new challenges and exploring new markets. A clear example of this is the establishment of Voilàp, the group’s digital arm, which is dedicated to the development of virtual platforms and showrooms. Clients can see their projects come to life, visualise their ideas and customise products to adapt them to their needs.

“Clients can now see the products online, choose the colour, size and finishing and finally apply their product of choice to different virtual rooms to get a more precise idea of the final result. This is our latest development and is now offered to our Italian clients, but we aim to export this tool for our international clients. Moreover, at a later stage we could easily apply this virtual platform to more products that can be customised. The possibilities are unlimited,” explained Mr Bellucci.

Future goals

“Our main focus now is to work on the integration with Elumatec. Our goal is to optimise processes and continue with product development.

At present, every time we want to update a component we have to take into account the whole family and the impact that a potential development could have on every line of the different companies of the group,” said Mr Bellucci. “Considering the number and the scale of the recent acquisitions, it is likely that there won’t be any other imminent investment in that direction. However, we do not eliminate the possibility of further acquisitions if the opportunity and timing are right.” n

In the 4.0 Industry era, as a group we felt the need to come full circle – something which is only within the reach of a company able to integrate and digitalise all sales processes, as well as production.

‘Voilàp’ was born out of this need and thanks to our skills. Through this digital company we have been able to offer our customers ‘View’, a revolutionary latest generation B2B web platform. This innovative digital show-room is focused on doors and windows but can also be customised to meet the needs of other sectors. It is able to present, configure and sell products, simplifying the purchasing process for the final customer. For the first time, the consumer can take part in a new purchasing process, based on an emotional, multisensorial and practical experience. Voilàp is proof of our awareness that to be successful in the Industry 4.0 age it is necessary to be able to connect all players along the production chain, with a total focus on the consumer. Voilàp is digitisation and integration: It’s the future brought to the present!