Textile World and a delegation from the NCSU College of Textiles team up for a look at the latest in Italian textile technology.

The Italian Trade Commission (ITC) and ICE Istituto nazionale per il Commercio Estero have united 14 leading Italian machinery manufacturers associations in a new initiative to showcase Italian-made machinery. These 14 associations represent more than 10,000 machinery manufacturers from industry sectors including agricultural/farming, ceramics, earthmoving, food processing, glass, iron foundry and metallurgy, leather and tanning, marble and stone, metalworking, packaging, plastics and rubber, printing, graphics and converting, textiles, and wood.

Representing the global textile machinery industry is the Italian Association of Textile Machinery Producers (ACIMIT), a vital link between Italian textile machinery producers and textile manufacturers seeking the latest in technology.

Flexibility, creativity and innovation are the three attributes most often cited by Italian equipment manufacturers as a credo for work, according to ACIMIT.

In terms of flexibility, a typical Italian manufacturing company has just 70 employees, with company owners typically managing day-to-day operations. Quick response is common, and time and attention are given to developing custom solutions for customers.

Creativity  is not just in food and fashion ?is part of the Italian tradition of outside-the-box thinking in design and engineering. From Leonardo da Vinci to Ferrari, Italians have followed the guiding principle that development can be achieved only by understanding the real needs of a situation and its intended influence. In the manufacturing arena, this approach translates into application-specific solutions to meet customer needs.

Ingenuity and innovation thrive within today's Italian manufacturing industry, known for leadership in machine development, integration and technological advancement.