Acimall announces new board members

Xylexpo, one of Acimall’s core business activity, a trade exhibition for manufacturing technology and industries (Image: Acimall)

Acimall has appointed new board members for the 2022-2025 term, with president Luigi De Vito and vice-president Marianna Daschini remaining in charge until next June.

The new board members are: Giorgio Casati from woodworking machinery manufacturer Casati Macchine; Roberto Ghizzoni from manufacturing company Dierregi; Stefania Maggi from manufacturing company Maggi Technology; and Pierluigi Paoletti from manufacturer Paoletti Energy. The assembly also voted to extend the mandate of board member Aldo Zaffaroni from panel processing company Mario Zaffaroni e Figli.

Outgoing board members include Umberto Pizzi from Pizzi by PGS, and Filippo Pellitteri from TWT.

After reaffirming the mission of the association founded back in 1966, De Vito stressed the uniqueness of the events that have occurred in the past few years all over the world, and the issues that remain to be solved in the near future: “The past two years were a turning point also for our association, as we had to leverage all our resources to stay vital and proactive, and to respond effectively to our member companies in a period of great uncertainty.”

But the business has been satisfactory for the past two years as well, with Italian production of woodworking machinery and tools amounting to €2.5 billion, a 36% increase on 2020 and 11% compared to 2019.

Exports also increased to €1.7bn, up 30% compared to 2020 and 10% versus 2019, and domestic sales amounted to €790 million, a 52% growth versus 2020 and 15% over 2019. Imports also expanded to €244m, a 59% increase compared to 2020 and 21% than in 2019.

“The growth we are seeing now is not only driven by incentives, which have substantially caused a concentration of investment decisions within a shorter time frame; expansion is also resulting from a structural rally that has taken the market back to its standard development lines,” said De Vito.

“Looking at headline news, we can say that the Russia-Ukraine crisis has so far had a limited impact on our export. Russia, Ukraine and Belarus together account for a significant share of Italian export in our industry, approximately 5% of total export. However, such export seems to continue, despite a significant reduction due to the current embargo that has been gradually expanded with the adoption of progressive sanctions.”

De Vito also reviewed promotion activities, a focus area for the association, benefiting from the economic and organisation support of ICE-Agenzia; the initiatives promoted through Confindustria, CFI – Comitato Fiere Industria, the membership of Federmacchine, and Eumabois, the federation of the European associations of wood and furniture technology manufacturers, where De Vito holds the role of vice-president.

De Vito also mentioned Xylexpo, a core business activity which will be held from 12-15 Oct 2022: “After cancelling the 2020 edition due to the sanitary emergency, we launched an exhibition project that combines Xylexpo and Bimu, the international exhibition of metalworking machines, robots and automation. Two different exhibitions merging into one big event dedicated to manufacturing technology.”

He concluded: “Acimall is our home, an association that, to deliver its mission of representing and promoting the industry, needs active participation by each and every one of us. An association lives if its members contribute with their experience and presence; it is an opportunity to discuss with each other, to interact, to identify a common destination, to ‘team up’.

“Otherwise, it is just a service company. But in that case, it is driven by a market logic that does not fit into the spirit of an association, and this was certainly not the original intention of our founders.”