Zucchi is new ACIMIT President

Alessandro Zucchi succeeds Raffaella Carabelli as President of ACIMIT.

Alessandro Zucchi has succeeded Raffaella Carabelli following the members’ assembly of ACIMIT, which was held on June 27.

Born in the province of Bergamo in 1958, Zucchi is married and a father of two children. He has garnered multi-year experiences in the textile machinery sector, and is currently Managing Director and a partner at FERRARO, a manufacturer specialising in finishing machinery. In addition, he is a shareholder in another company in the sector, BUROCCO VALVOLE, of which he is Executive Vice President. Zucchi has long been active in the life of the association, lending his support to outgoing president Carabelli over the past two years, as Vice President. Since 2015, he has been involved with ACIMIT’s delegation at Cematex, the Committee of European Textile Machinery Associations.

Following Zucchi’s election, the assembly expressed its warm gratitude to the outgoing president, Carabelli, who for four years guided the Association with enthusiasm and professional expertise.

Along with the new president, the assembly also elected new Vice Presidents, Messrs. Federico Businaro (Isotex, Santex Rimar Group), Cristian Locatelli (Marzoli, Camozzi Group), Andrea Piattelli (Unitech) and Michele Riva (Reggiani Macchine).

Italian textile machinery: Trend for 2016

The figures relative to 2016 was presented at the annual Assembly of Italian textile machinery manufacturers, highlighting further growth, as already observed the previous year. Carabelli said: “We now need to seize the challenge of Industry 4.0, in order to be even more competitive on global markets.”

There’s innovation in the future of the Italian textile machinery, thanks in part to the stimulus provided by Industry 4.0, as stated at the Assembly held by the industry association ACIMIT by Carabelli, presenting the figures for the sector. In 2016, Italy’s production of textile machinery rose 5 per cent compared to 2015, thereby reaching a value of 2.7 billion euros. During the same period, exports grew by 4 per cent, amounting to 2.3 billion euros. This reinforces the positive trend already observed in 2015, and is the result of a substantial confirmation of the state of foreign markets, as well as growth for Italy’s domestic market (indeed, domestic sales of Italian manufacturers increased 14 per cent). The various incentives implemented by the Government’s policy no doubt have played an essential role in kick starting domestic demand.

“The measures linked to Industry 4.0 are the main tools that will allow our industrial sector take a step forward,” affirmed Carabelli. “Italian manufacturers must take advantage of the evolution in digital technology to further boost production efficiency and competitiveness globally.”

For the textile sector, and machinery manufacturers especially, Industry 4.0 represents a challenge aimed at stimulating dialogue between businesses operating within the sector. But is the textile machinery sector ready to take on these challenges? To outline the latest state of the art trends and track possible future scenarios, ACIMIT quoted a study of its own associated members, conducted by Rina Consulting SpA and presented at the General Assembly. The study points out the high level of awareness by Italian manufacturers regarding the latest technologies and their adoption (particularly cloud and cyber security technologies), with positive outcomes on productivity.