Tech Tour: Italian Firms Push the Limits
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At Bussi srl, an operator sets up the Windor HT 4145. Bussi, located in Santa Sofia in Italy’s Tuscany
region, makes windows, shutters and doors, working in chestnut, oak, pine, mahogany, Douglas fir,
hemlock and iroko. Multi-axis CNC machining achieves the contoured components (inset).


For nine fortunate U.S. woodworking industry professionals, SCM Group’s annual Technology Days Doors+Windows event provided a treasure trove of technology presentations and application insights.

Beginning with a tour of SCM Group’s Rimini, Italy headquarters, we had an opportunity to see the latest generation, and even some next-generation, production machinery. We were able to gain firsthand knowledge from SCM Group experts and engineers about how its systems were developed and their potential applications, during a tour of SCM Group’s manufacturing facility. The operation is unique in the industry for its vertical integration, including steel casting of heavy machinery parts. This internal control allows absolute precision in machining parts to exacting tolerances, and optimal integration with electronic controls — critical to SCM Group’s approach to custom building many of its wood cutting machines.

The tech tour, as the “Doors+Windows” theme suggests, centered on technology for the housing and wood interiors industries generally, including doors, windows, stairs, chairs and tables, floors, housing roofs and walls, and boat interiors.

SCM Group is grounded in a mission of “Passion, Technology, Performance,” with passion driving creative genius, initiative and the ability to work in a team; technology, the scientific rigor that transforms creativity into highly technical solutions; and performance, the commitment that is transformed into results that drive success for SCM Group customers and partners.

 
SCM Group traces its roots to 1935, when Nicola Gemmani and Lanfranco Aureli set up a business making agricultural implements. After WWII, the demand for furniture, doors and window frames was growing, and the company changed its focus to woodworking machines, introducing the cast-iron Invincible, the first combination machine, in 1952.

Through acquisitions and launches over the years, SCM Group (Italy) now comprises many brands, including: SCM, Celaschi, DMC, MiniMax, Routech, Stefani, Steelmec, CPC, Gabbiani, Morbidelli, SAG, Superfici, Hiteco, Delmac Engineering, Mahros, REM, Sergiani, SCMFonderie, and ES.
Being in close quarters with some of the leading wood industry executives from the United States for the week also opened opportunities for exchange of ideas on business management and production.

And the plant tours of our Italian counterparts formed the highlight of the week-long event.

Our first stop was at CT Arredamenti, a manufacturer of custom pleasure craft interiors, and a key supplier for Ferritti, a luxury yacht manufacturer. Founded in 1990, CT Arredamenti employs 27 in a 45,000 square foot plant. Two Routech Chronos 5-axis CNC machining centers are at the heart of CT Arredamenti’s production — a second was added, notably, during a downturn, to reduce labor costs. The company works with marine grade plywood and has begun using reconstituted veneers, valued for their strength and durability in marine applications.

From there it was on to Filli Biondini, founded in 1917 and one of the oldest manufacturers in the region of Umbria. Owner Gualdo Cattaneo said his 32 employees manufacture 1,200 windows each month. In a parallel storyline, Cattaneo related that his great grandfather launched the firm after journeying to New York by boat to purchase his first woodworking machinery from a U.S. company. Filli Biondini operates an SCM Windor100, which tenons, routes and cleans four sides, indexes parts, and can custom make even one window at a time.

Our final visit was to 24-employee Bussi srl, in Santa Sofia in Italy’s Tuscany region, which makes shutters, blinds, sliding glass doors framed in chestnut, oak, pine, mahogany, Douglas fir, hemlock, niangon and iroko. Fully automated, the plant operates a Routech CNC 4 axis router, Superset NT moulder, Windor HT 4145 and TISO shaper.

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