Having a heavy-duty steel structure machining workshop close to the Imola plant so that many of the tasks also done at Sacmi’s main mechanical workshop can be handled more effectively and efficiently: these are the ‘industrial’ reasons that convinced Sacmi to take over Forlì-based company Vallicelli, which will be renamed Sacmi Carpmec and headed by engineer Walter Tontini, with Marco Fattorini (President), Simona Zardi and Massimo Cavalli making up the new board of directors.
But the decisions regarding the Vallicelli takeover are more than simply industrial; they also represent the successful conclusion of a long industrial partnership that has, over the years, gone from strength to strength; in the 1970s Vallicelli srl entered the heavy-duty metalworking sector as a producer of ceramic clay grinding drums and a producer of gantry cranes and hoists. Sacmi, also a customer of Metalmeccanica of Forlì (which later joined Vallicelli in the merger with Comef), continued to be supplied by Vallicelli for years, and soon after the turn of the century also sold the company an integrated welding station.
So when owner-founder Romeo Vallicelli decided to put the company up for sale, Sacmi’s interest was only natural; the final agreement for use of the entire facility (40,000 m2 of which 8,400 m2 are factory sheds) provides an opportunity for growth and also a way of continuing what is almost an ‘old-style’ way of doing business. What Sacmi found particularly attractive was the mill drum production department, which employs 22 people: however, production of other metalwork structures for other non-ceramic sectors such as mining, energy and food will also be maintained.
A takeover, then, that meets the dual needs of continuity and renewal, with Sacmi Carpmec playing, in the future, a leading production role within the Group.
Moreover, Sacmi Carpec, by providing analysis, simulation and test services, also constitutes a useful ally for the mill design department; the presence of a mechanical workshop, painting department and development area with heavy duty gantry cranes could also allow Sacmi to outsource some of its assembly or testing tasks, thus optimising the way work is carried out in the Imola-based parent company. What’s more, the facility also offers opportunities on the whiteware and beverage fronts, which will ensure continued enhancement of synergy between the various Group companies.