With more than 150 years of experience and playing leader in the world market for process machinery manufacturing for textile finishing, nonwovens, technical textiles and water treatment, the Santex Rimar Group with brands like Cavitex, Isotex, Santex, Sperotto Rimar and Solwa has acquired SMIT to provide solutions in the weaving sector.
Our editor Ganesh Kalidas explores the value-adds and leverage Santex Rimar offers for their customers in an interview with the Group CEO Stefano Gallucci.
SMIT, a forerunner in the weaving machinery manufacturing sector since 1938, has been supplying weaving machinery for a range of applications in this sector, with technologies like rapier weft insertion for home textiles, garments and terry products, air-jet weft insertion for mass production and custom solutions for special technical fabrics.
The entry into the Santex Rimar Group ensures value additions through the vast sales and support network worldwide and technology for the customers.
The synergy between SMIT and the Santex Rimar Group means the customers can access reliable global service network and high quality products with a sense of technological heritage they provide.
During the interaction, Stefano Gallucci said with a ray of confidence that together they would focus on product innovation and development that would mean newer solutions to improve production processes and levels for their customers. With 150 years of rich heritage the Santex Rimar Group has been innovative, offering reliability and lowering cost of production, together with environment-friendly technologies.
The Santex Rimar Group has its presence in Italy, Switzerland, China and India and has more than 10K customers worldwide. Asked how will Santex Rimar beat the competition where seemingly a technological lead of three years is in place when compared to SMIT’s tech, Stefano Gallucci said there are no disadvantages in the technology of the machinery when compared to the competition. They have a lot of activities happening at the combined Group R&D facility to increase the efficiencies of the production processes delivered by the machinery with respect to the software used that controls the production to take on competition. The focus largely would be on the rapier weft technology. With that confident look in his eyes, he says, “At this moment can’t divulge more information on our USPs, a lot is happening for one has to wait to see”.
Any plan of manufacturing facility in China is ruled out for looms, all the looms would be made, packed and sent from the existing European facilities and newer ones slated to be put in Vicenza, in the North East of Italy where the Santex Rimar Group is headquartered.
“Only European Made”
A total of 5 million Euros is being budgeted for the new facilities planned in Europe. The investment planned is not building factory, as they have existing buildings at Vicenza and most of the investments would go in for re-engineering the assembling of the Looms. Apart from budgeted investments into their R&D for SMIT.
Stefano Gallucci further said that the market/customer knows the financial muscle of the Santex Rimar Group and that it would deliver what it promises at whatever costs.
Asked about India plans, he said that they are present and their distribution/marketing set up is two-tone, one being the agency model and the other partnership. India as a market has a potential that cannot be ignored. The group has a service centre based in Coimbatore since late nineties but they are investing to strengthen the group’s presence in the country and to be closer to their customers. So they do have a plan up their sleeve.
He said that when it came to the next 5-year plan or the 2020. SMIT under Santex Rimar Group would be able to develop and market technologically far more advanced machinery for their customers. And their innovative methods are not restricted to technology and production alone so to say. They participate in investing with their customers and join forces with them to grow.
When it came to the most important question on the issue of after sales and spare part availability Stefano Gallucci reiterates, that they would walk that extra mile to ensure good quality spares and seamless supplies of the same.
While he acknowledged the prevalence of grey market for spares and at lower costs, he also adds, that the grey market spares are of inferior quality and that Santex Rimar Group having their own spare parts manufacturing division, has acquired a fairly large spare parts producing company to ensure quality and speedy delivery. The spares market being quite huge in revenue terms they don’t want that to be ignored either.
The Santex Rimar Group a name to reckon with in the World of Textile Solutions has its presence no doubt.