ISTECH, A REVIEW OF 2021 AND PROSPECTS FOR THE NEW YEAR (Italian version published by elemento tubo, febbraio 2022)

What does the metal cutting segment look like at the end of an unusual 2021 and on the threshold of an interesting 2022? We spoke about this with the CEO of ISTech, Alessandro Rescaldani, who described his experience and provided us with some forecasts, from the point of view of a company which has been providing solutions for this sector for over 25 years.

2021 was a special year, marked by the recovery of many industrial sectors and at the same time by supply difficulties for many raw materials: how did it go for ISTech?

The signs of recovery were clear and tangible, especially as regards the domestic market, undoubtedly supported by the incentives provided by the New Sabatini directive for investments in capital goods and technologies with a 4.0 perspective.
There have been supply problems for many raw materials, from metals to plastics, and this has affected the availability of components we use, but for some reason it has not affected all suppliers equally; our policy of diversifying supply channels and the constant search for quality component suppliers has enabled us to fulfil our orders, albeit with some additional difficulties.
Many companies have coped with the supply problem by increasing their stocks. In our case, this is difficult, as our production mostly involves customised solutions, that is, unique specimens or small series, but we have nevertheless increased stocks of the most commonly used components.
The combination of these logistics management policies has enabled us to continue to deliver machinery and tools while limiting the delays associated with this situation as much as possible.

Industrial automation has undergone considerable development: does this also apply to your sector? Which segments have given you the greatest satisfaction?

There is no doubt that the automation sector is continuing to grow; the trend is widespread in all industries, and even in the metal cutting segment there are many companies which are adapting their production to the new standards of efficiency and competitiveness of the industry, assisted in this by the incentives we mentioned earlier.
The upswing has been seen in all the segments we cover, but we have noticed a particular liveliness in the cut-to-length companies, the resellers of steel and steel products, the production of valves and other components and semi-finished products for industry. The tendency to automate production as much as possible is, however, a feature which is shared by all the segments we target.

What was more interesting for ISTech in 2021, the domestic market or exports? In particular, in which countries did the company perform well? And the Klaeger brand, in which markets was it most appreciated?

Most of our production falls within the scope of the regulations on incentives for the purchase of 4.0 capital goods, and this has undoubtedly helped us in terms of sales in Italy, but even abroad, although we cannot count on similar incentives, we have noticed a renewed dynamism in the sector.
In particular, also thanks to the ability of our dealer, the Scandinavian markets have shown considerable receptivity to our solutions.
As for Klaeger, the brand has confirmed its good performance in the German-speaking markets, which have always been the ones where it is best known and appreciated.

Are there any innovations in the pipeline for 2022?

There are many innovations planned for 2022: first of all, a considerable expansion of the usable space in our headquarters, where we plan to create more floor space thanks to a renovation. As well as increasing the number of workstations, the new space will also improve the quality of working life with larger premises for services such as changing rooms or the canteen area.
As far as production is concerned, fortunately the benefits of the new Sabatini and 4.0 directives are also applicable to us: thanks to these incentives, we have been able to envisage the purchase of a new machining centre which will allow us to automate the mechanical machining necessary for the production of our machines and systems.
There is also news for Klaeger, which will have new premises, in the immediate proximity of the current one, but larger and more functional.
In conclusion, we are looking forward to a good year: we are confident that our projects will come to fruition and that the same will be true for all our stakeholders, to whom we wish a happy and prosperous 2022.