Ica celebrate forty years in the business of special wood coatings. A long, intensive story that has turned the Marche-based group into a leading industry actor.
2011 will close with more than 110 million Euro revenues, the best result ever achieved, 10 percent higher than 2010. This figure is incredible if you consider the global economic situation, but it seems that the decisions implemented by the owners – the Paniccia family – have worked out. An excellent condition to blow the candles of their 40th birthday, celebrated with a 25.6 million Euro investment plan for 2011-2013, including 8.9 million for new product development and doubling the extension of the R&D department in Civitanova Marche.
Ica’s story started in 1971, when the founder, Claudio Paniccia, launched the production of special wood coatings. We had the privilege to be taken by Mr. Paniccia himself on a tour of the amazing Civitanova Marche factory, to celebrate a piece of history, but also to find out the real driving force of Ica: the Paniccia’s passion. First of all, the passion of the founder: “I was the licensee of a paint manufacturer – he tells – but I realized it was essential to follow the changes that were occurring in the furniture industry, making bold decisions.And I decided to produce coatings!A difficult choice, but I would do it again.This is my family…”.
Production combines big volumes and standard products with the possibility to create small samples, maybe just a few kilos of special color for one piece of furniture created by an architect, within a catalog with thousands of options where customers never find what they want.
Ica is a sort of town made of technology, know-how, attention to customer. It’s amazing how easy and, at the same time, complicated it is to make a good coating, how many elements contribute to success. Often, dozens and dozens of ingredients are required.
On our tour with Claudio Paniccia, thanks to his patience, we found out many things we had never imagined.
Today, Ica is a giant with many records: first in Italy to make water coatings in 1983, first Italian coating manufacturer certified to standard Uni En Iso 9001. And then, in 1995, the European Community “Life” label for the commitment to “durable and sustainable development”, the Uni En Iso 14001 environmental certification… all major achievements for Claudio Paniccia and his family.
Over the years, the founder was supported by sons Fabio and Piero, currently heads of the R&D labs, and Sandro, President and Ceo of the group. More recently, the third generation has arrived: Andrea and Claudio Paniccia Jr., Fabio’s sons, are respectively president and Ceo of Salchi Wood Coatings and president of Ica Iberia.
It’s Sandro Paniccia, president and Ceo, we have met to discuss a few topics, starting from the market.
“Italy is definitely the major destination of our production”, he says. “Although the situation is still negative, in 2010 things went pretty well for us (see box on this page, editor’s note), but we cannot deny that many of our customers are affected by the crisis.We have also made significant investments in Spain, where we had to replace our local distributor.The balance is positive, but also in Spain the economic situation is very difficult.Not to mention Greece… but there is no alternative:you have to get ready to seek success across the border, in emerging or mature markets where our products can meet the demand of customers looking for quality solutions.We will be more and more aggressive, especially towards Europe.After all, our history proves this:we are a dynamic group, we want to do much and well.The 10 percent growth achieved last year in spite of everything is clear evidence of the effectiveness of our decisions and strategies.Today, we export 36 percent of our production, a share we want to increase”.
How has the coating business changed in recent years?
“I would say that the actors are basically the same, despite a season of mergers and acquisitions.Size is essential in our industry, and to go back to what I said before, in Italy there are too many producers for the consumption levels we have.If we had not found output markets abroad, we would have died… Unfortunately, there’s too much price competition that narrows our margins, crushed between market difficulties and the huge cost increase of raw materials.
But the biggest change involves our customer relationships:we are no longer suppliers, but consultants.We are essential to prepare the “dress” of furniture, and the more beautiful and accurate it is, the more it will sell.This has led us to develop solutions with a visual and process-related value, so that customers who choose our products can be more competitive.
I must say that customers who follow us and have understood our commitment, have also had excellent results.A key factor was the decision to use products with low environmental impact:we were the first to believe this, and now we are the European leader of water coatings, a leadership acknowledged even by our competitors.We have acquired an edge that has also benefited our customers, who can now deliver furniture and products with added value”.
What about your relationship with the manufacturers of coating application equipment?
“You mentioned a key point”, says sales manager Rinaldo Guagnoni. “Each type of coating we produce is tested to meet specific characteristics in terms of colors, properties, performance and resistance, while also testing spray, curtain, roller and brush application.We must always be sure that our customer can be fully confident with the result in terms of color, as well as industrial process.We have laboratories for all kinds of machines and technology, where we acquire knowledge that we transfer to our technical support and, therefore, to our customers.We even test finished and painted products, so that we can provide the buyers of our coatings with a warranty of full compliance with the standards that apply to their products.Significant investments, the know-how of a certification lab we have built step by step and that today enables us to act as consultants that give a substantial contribution to obtain specific finishing, with unique physical-mechanical resistance…”.
“… and to do this – adds Sandro Paniccia – collaboration with technology manufacturers must be very close.We have known and worked with them for many years, generating an information exchange that has helped us provide furniture and window manufacturers with standards that were unimaginable until few years ago.Just think that we are often asked to travel around the world to start up the plants manufactured by many companies we work with”.
What about the environment, it’s a topic you have been sensitive to for a long time?
“Coating manufacturers, especially Ica, have invested a lot in research to create suitable “dresses” for furniture, in terms of visual impact and resistance, which is one of the most critical issues for water paints compared to solvent-based coatings.We have made huge progress, also thanks to resins with enhanced properties.But there is little awareness and culture:even European standards, implemented also by Italy, are too vague”.
And what are you planning for the next forty years?
“That’s easy:technology and easy traveling have turned the entire world into our market.We have to look at the international scenario if we want to grow;we are the wood coating manufacturer with the strongest growth rates.Today we are at number two in Italy and four in Europe, because we have always tried to grow by expanding the market.How?So far, producing in Italy and selling everywhere, but tomorrow we might think about manufacturing sites in other countries.Who knows…”.
ICA TODAY
130 thousand square meter areas, 42 thousand of which covered. Three manufacturing sites (two in Civitanova Marche and Salchi Wood Coating in Romano d’Ezzellino), 380 employees, including 34 in R&D and 21 in quality control.
Ica Group is one of the prominent companies for special wood coating production in Europe, with operations in over 50 countries and a 36 percent export share. It controls 16 percent of the Italian wood coating market, with branches-warehouses in Pesaro, Pescara, Lissone (Milano), Gorgo al Monticano and Motta di Livenza (Treviso), Manzano (Udine).
27 thousand tons (17,500 on the Italian market) of products branded Ica and Salchi (96 percent of revenues) have been used so far in furniture, joinery, shipbuilding, outdoor constructions, windows, outdoor furniture, parquet and musical instruments.
ICA GROUP AT SICAM 2011
At Sicam, Ica Group introduced the new series “Supercare” and “Aseptica”. “Supercare” includes products that have low levels of environmental impact (water-based bicomponent coatings, water-based UV coatings and high-solid UV coatings) and high levels of chemical/physical resistance. Supercare products are available in transparent and pigmented versions and allow to achieve major reductions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released during application, a reduction that often exceeds 90% compared to more traditional cycles.
The main characteristic of the new sanitizing coatings “Aseptica”, which are available in transparent and pigmented versions, is that they render the surface onto which they are applied microbiologically clean… Thanks to the fact that “Aseptica” coatings contain a compound of micro-particles, they produce a long-lasting sanitizing effect.
Ica, forty years of success
ultima modifica: 2011-09-30T00:00:00+00:00
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