We would like to inform all our stakeholders last 20th December 2022, an agreement between the Gabelli family and Max Streicher S.p.a. has been signed so that the latter enter into membership of Effegidi International S.p.a.
The official press release is available below:Â
Let’s get to know Giuseppe Scalzo, Plant Production Manager at Effegidi, up close.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR CAREER PATH: HOW DID YOU ARRIVED IN EFFEGIDI?
My professional path began in 1999 with a degree in Management Engineering with a “Computational” address, obtained at The University of Calabria – Unical. I have always been involved in production process optimization, both in terms of Costs and in terms of Time and Methodologies. After a long experience in the Electromechanical sector, I took up the invitation of an “old” colleague and decided, therefore, to accept this new challenge in Effegidi, in a field that until recently was completely unknown to me.
WHICH ARE YOUR PERSONAL GOALS?
In my almost 25-year career, I have always had one constant goal, which is to increase my skills and knowledge and to grow together with the company in which I work. However, this is only possible if the corporate environment allows it, and I must say, to my great pleasure, that Effegidi is just such a good example.
WHICH ARE EFFEGIDI’S MAIN STRENGTHS?
One of the winning points is definitely the type of sector in which Effegidi operates, which in many respects is considered niche, but the real strength is that, unlike many other competitors, Effegidi listens to its customers’ requests by investing heavily in researching new solutions and thus new products. And it is precisely this diversification of the offer that makes Effegidi one of the leaders of reference in its field. Last, but not least, is that of having created over the years a family work environment where the success of the individual is the success of all.
IN YOUR OPINION, WHICH IS EFFEGIDI’S NEAR FUTURE?
Without necessarily wanting to venture, in a few years I see Effegidi even more protagonist on the market. This is evidenced by the fact that, in the immediate future, there will be major investments that will allow us to increase our production capacity and thus meet, the ever-increasing demands of our customers. This is a source of pride for the entire staff of Effegidi and especially for myself because it especially affects the corporate function that I am honored to lead and represent.
Today we will speak about flexographic print, one of the best fields in which Effegidi has been growing the most and having the best results in the last few years.
Flexographic print, or more commonly Flexo, is a direct rotating relief printing system mostly used in the packaging industry which offers high quality combined with utmost versatility in producing any kind of packaging: corrugated cardboard, aluminium, paper, flexible films, labels and so on. Flexography uses relief rubber rolls, or liquid photopolymer called cliché; flexing these embossing clichè allows us to transfer on the paper the customized and chosen image.
In the last few years Effegidi has been specializing more and more on flexographic print and more in general in the packaging field, reaching a consistent growing and innovation in this department. We have plenty of ambition and enthusiasm to enhance our skills and to create new opportunities in the food packaging field, and, furthermore they are a solid basis on which we want to develop the company’s future.
To this purpose as it can be read in the dedicated article, on November 17th the flexographic community came together in Bologne to perform the award ceremony of the contest “Best Flexo 2021”. In this event, Effegidi was awarded in the category “Creative and/or innovative use of the flexographic process”. This prize has acted as a springboard that has allowed to Effegidi to move towards to more ambitious goals and achievements.
One among many is the attendance to the FTA Europe Diamond Awards, this event was held in Milan on May 5th, 2022 in which the excellence in flexography has been celebrated while prizing the best flexographic products in Europe. All the competing companies were winners of national flexo competitions, and that made the event a unique occasion to gather together the flexo excellence. Besides, the FTA Europe association represents the common interests of the European flexographic printing industry by providing a dedicated platform, cooperating in common areas of interest and sustaining the industry presence in the EU Institutions. Getting in contact with these outstanding companies surely is a great honour which we will treasure.
Being able to reach the second place on the podium has been an unprecedented great satisfaction for us in Effegidi and as well having the chance to attend to such an amazing event. In particular, being witness of how what we do and our dedication and commitment to our work has been valued made us completely proud. Now our goal is to continue on this successful road, consistently grow up in the national market but also in the European and the whole world.
Let’s meet Gabriele Zeni, Effegidi Quality Department employee.
WILL YOU TELL US YOUR PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE, Â HOW YOU ARRIVED IN EFFEGIDI?
I started my training in a technical field by getting first a Bachelor Degree and then a Master Degree in Science and Food Technology at the University of Parma, I chose it due to my personal interest for the food field and the many job opportunities in the area. Working in Effegidi International has represented my first real job experience and it started by replying to an online job offer that was directed to a person specialised in my field to be employed in the company’s technical office. Since then I have worked in R&D for a couple of years and I have been working closely with the production giving my contribution, as main referee, to the development to the Effegidi International winemaking projects, until we launched it on the markets both Italian and International. Within the last year and half I have consistently been shifting my commitment to the Quality department: both related to the quality of the new lab, improved with new equipment (as my colleague Andrea Dallargine explained in this article), and the regulatory and assurance aspects of it.
WHICH ARE YOUR PERSONAL GOALS?
My main personal goals are 2: continue to give my contribution to reach the goals that the company sets and maintain a constant professional growth to reach an always more defined role within Effegidi International.
WHICH ARE EFFEGIDI’S MAIN STRENGTHS?
One of Effegidi’s greatest strengths is the diversification; during the years we have been entering and growing in different markets that helped us increasing our productive Know-How while opening new chances with constant opportunities and challenges. Another strength is that I have immediately noticed is the team spirit that in Effegidi’s team everyone has and this is something, in my opinion, that is vital to effectively work in a company.
IN YOUR OPINION, WHICH IS EFFEGIDI’S NEAR FUTURE?
In few years, I wish to see Effegidi International consolidating its position in the different markets we are operating now and that compose our offer range: cables, food, foil and winemaking and maybe who knows, after that we may be able to open our horizons and move our first steps in to other different markets. Surely we have everything we need to reach these goals.
Let’s meet Andrea Dallargine, our Quality Manager.
PLEASE, TELL US YOUR PROFESSIONAL STORY AND HOW YOU ARRIVED IN EFFEGIDI
I have a purely technical education. I attended the Agrarian Technical Institute (a specific high school) and then I attended the Science and Food Technology BA Course at the University of Parma. Due to the fact that I have always had a natural predisposition towards the scientific subjects I chose a course that could offer more opportunities for a career compared to others in the same field, and since we are in the Italian Food Valley, choosing has not being that difficult.
Before Effegidi, I have always worked in Companies operating in the food industry and I gained there my experience from the moment I took my Degree in 2005 until 2017 when I received the offer to work as Quality Manager in Effegidi.
That offer left me a bit surprised: Effegidi’s core business was in the cables field and my training was not related at all to that market. I discovered that back then Effegidi had just launched a Business Unit dedicated to materials developed for the food contact and for this reason they were looking for a Food Technologist.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR CONTRIBUTION IN EFFEGIDI?
I really believe in the “team”. I strongly believe that Effegidi team works really well together and is cohesive, it is a group where everyone has their specific role. Mine is to guarantee the Certified Quality Standard to our customers and I do it by conveying any customers’ requests inside Effegidi’s reality.
PLEASE, TALK TO US ABOUT THE QUALITY CONTROL IN EFFEGIDI
The Quality Control is something more of a managing system rather than a process. A voluntary system, and I state this as voluntary because there is no law to regulate it, Italian nor European, that dictates the use of a Quality managing system and even more so, certified. Besides by using the word “system” it is implied something that crosses the departments and involves not only one function, but every single person working in the Company (From the C.E.O. to the machine operator).
Everyone has a piece, small or big, of Quality tasks to do, and everyone contributes to manage the Company according to this system. To operate according to the system, rules must be set.
Simplifying to the core, these rules are usually procedures and instructions that can define managing/organizing aspects (e.g. how to issue a purchase order, how to process a Customer’s order etc…), or operative aspects (how to realize a joint, which blades must be used to cut a specific material, etc…). In both cases, procedures and instructions can be of two kinds:
Dividing the Quality Department in two: Quality Assurance and Quality Control is formally more correct.
The Quality Assurance manages those aspects related to the definition of internal procedures and instructions, to overseeing the requests that come from the Costumers (contained in the Technical Specifications), and even those aspects related to the control that this Managing System works according to the rules; in case of some not-aligned event occurs, the Quality Assurance coordinates the in charge company’s functioning in order to identify the causes, the corrective actions and, if possible, the improvements to be taken to reduce the probability of a repetition of that occurrence.
The Quality Control intervenes on more operative aspects related to the compliance control made on the specific characteristics of the finished products or the production process parameters. In short terms it involves internal analysis ran in compliance with a set monitoring plan (e.g. thickness, mechanical parameters etc…) and compliance control on process parameters (e.g. glue dosing, Corona treatment, etc…).
It is a complex process, hard to sum up in few lines.
Quality is a way of thinking, a managing method of an organization that involves using a set of rules in order to achieve a primary goal: within a constantly evolving market, the goal is to consistently improving our products’ quality produced to guarantee our Customers’ satisfaction.
PLEASE, TALK TO US ABOUT THE LABORATORY AND THE RECENT INVESTMENTS FOR THE EQUIPMENT
In June 2021, Effegidi has inaugurated the new Quality Control Laboratory, by moving the equipment in a new and more efficient space, increasing also the number of devices that can actually support the Company in the control process of technical parameters of raw materials, semi-finished materials and also the finished products, in order to maintain the goal of constantly guarantee the compliance of the safety and functionality requirements. Recently we have also made some investments on new equipment. But let’s move step by step.
Our already existing equipment consisted in:
The new devices are:
WHICH IS EFFEGIDI’S FUTURE WITHIN FEW YEARS?
In one word: I see it “protagonist”. Protagonist in the wiring and food packaging fields. I think that Effegidi has the all the assets and the right personnel to do it. Since I have been working in the Quality department for 17 years I can say that I am witnessing that the engagement rules are steadily getting tighter and tighter, but I strongly believe in one thing: we are ready!
Let’s meet Giorgio Cavani, Export Manager for the Cable division in Effegidi
TELL US YOUR PROFESSIONAL STORY AND HOW YOU STARTED WORKING IN EFFEGIDIÂ
After taking my degree I have worked as a consultant for KPMG Australia and for the BMW Group in Italy, both these experiences have been immensely educational but they were not really related with the sales department. In 2006 I started working as an Export Manager for a company that produces electrical cables, since then I have always been focused on internationalization, commercial development and export in many industrial fields.
WHICH ARE YOUR PERSONAL GOALS?
My main goal is to be an effective asset for Effegidi in reaching its own goals, by sustaining and going with the company in the path of growth that is waiting ahead.
HOW WAS THE LAST YEAR FOR THE CABLE DIVISION?
2021 was characterized by both growth and huge difficulties connected with the pandemic. On one hand our company faced a substantial increasing in the product demand that allowed us to grow; on the other hand, though, the raw materials global supplying production chains were out of control and that created a certain discontinuity in the supplying and most of all a major and gradual price increasing. After years of mostly steady conditions, with the pandemic lots of habits have been challenged. It was necessary to reinvent.
WHICH ARE EFFEGIDI’S STRENGHTS?
Effegidi has many strenghts, in several company departments therefore it is impossible for me to list all of them now. If I had to state the most substantial ones related to my role, I would enclose:
WHICH IS EFFEGIDI’S FUTURE IN A FEW YEARS, ACCORDING TO YOU?
I think that Effegidi has a bright future ahead filled with satisfactions. I think the company will gain an always more prominent role in the cable world, but at the same time I believe that it is a sensible foreseeing a major increase in other fields in which we have already been operating successfully (i.e. packaging, trading and all that will come…)
Thank you Giorgio for these new and enthusiastic information and for sharing all your trust in our company.
2021 has marked two years since, out of the blue, our world has been turned upside down. But most often the best satisfaction grows out of difficult times and BestInFlexo proves it.
The BestInFlexo award ceremony was held in Bologna on November 17th: this is a competition conceived and promoted by ATIF, the Italian technical association for flexography.
On that occasion, the Italian flexo community gathered to celebrate its reference industry, honouring the winners of two editions of the BestInFlexo award for flexographic print quality (2020 and 2021, respectively).
Our company has received the prestigious BestInFlexo award in the category “Creative and innovative use of flexographic printing”.
This acknowledged recognition makes all of us extremely proud: it highlights our work and our dedication in this sector and, at the same time, it recognises one of our main goals, i.e. the pursuit of cutting-edge solutions.
We create solutions where both innovation and creativity can thrive, and which are tailor-made to our customers’ needs. This has always been our core purpose. We dedicate ourselves to creating value and to fully satisfying our customers, to get better and better.
But the challenge is still there! The winners of the BestInFlexo award will be entered into the Fta Europe Diamond Awards and into the European nomination list for the flexographic sector. The prize-giving ceremony will take place on the 5th of May 2022 in Milan, and we will be glad to participate!
We hope that this will be the first of many other rewarding events…
“Telling the story of this past year, both from a business and a human perspective, is extremely difficult. The year 2021 is closely linked to 2020, the year in which the pandemic started and we found ourselves, without warning, in a completely different world in every way, inevitably also in terms of business.
Trying to overcome the many difficulties that arose, we first worked to create and ensure a safe working environment within the company. It was very satisfying to see that everyone at Effegidi saw work as an opportunity to get out of that very complex and tiring period.
This period is now even more challenging due to the serious difficulty in finding MPs on the market, which inevitably makes all the work more complex.
Despite the impediments, obstacles and problems, thanks to the resourcefulness, willingness and commitment of my staff, we have continued to work without ever stopping, managing to provide answers, services and products to our customers.
It is thanks to the sacrifices and dedication of all those who work in the company at various levels that we are preparing to close the year 2021 with an excellent result and with many awards received (including the most important “Best in Flexo” and reconfirmation in the “Top 500” ranking of companies in Parma).
Looking to the new year and Looking ahead to the new year and being realistic, I think it could be similar to the one that is coming to an end and, apart from the pandemic situation, we will have to manage an extreme variability of prices and procurement of MPs, with little control over their supply, caused by transport times and costs.
In view of this unpredictability, the company is organising itself and preparing to produce each metre of film with the best possible technology through new investments, new machinery and the collaboration of trusted people.
In short, Effegidi is ready to offer its professionalism and reliability, aiming as always at the highest possible quality.
I wish everyone a new year in which we can get back to a work and private routine that we have now forgotten.
I wish my company a lot of luck and prosperity which I am sure, with the help of all the resources that are part of it, will smile on us!”
With these beautiful words, and this wish, Effegidi International is ready to face 2022.
Within the framework of an eco-logical plastic material management, Effegidi renews its commitment to the environment. In association with Geri Service we have developed a new film line, where our ever-greener soul expresses itself best.
We at Effegidi dedicate ourselves to the development of eco-friendly materials. And the goals we have achieved are also the fruits of our partnership with other leading companies: together, we create new solutions. ACS sinks its roots precisely in this context.
This patented air coating system stems from a Geri Service’s intuition, a company which works every day in the catering and ready meal industry. With its strong presence in Italy, Geri Service was the first to understand the need for a packaging which would allow the transpiration of the gases inside a vacuum-sealed ready meal, and which would be at the same time sustainable from both a hygienic and logistic point of view.
We at Effegidi and Geri Service have teamed up, creating a specific solution for the packaging of prepared meals made in the cooking centres of collective catering services. In short, we have applied the state-of-the-art system for heat sealing films to the converting field.
Together with Geri Service, we at Effegidi have developed a dedicated product line: starting from the classical film currently used (in Pet/PP), it evolves in recyclable and biodegradable films. And we are looking forward to making them compostable as well. Always keeping in mind that we aim at the overall reduction in present-day thicknesses.
Ours is a winning partnership both for the technical aspect of the production of prepared meals and for the environmental sustainability. In fact, the plastic industry is always under the spotlight and constantly looking for real solutions which could improve the management and the appropriate use by all final users.
Its advantages
Air Coating System technical specifications allow degassing the vapour inside the meals/hot containers ready for consumption, thus preventing swelling without the puncture by an operator. This significantly reduces the possibility of external agent contamination, while ensuring a better food hygiene and safety: a key aspect for the pandemic era we are living in. Finally, eliminating the need for puncture in the closing cycle allows optimized processing and packaging times.
In other words, our system combines the indirect degassing, which prevents direct contact between food and the external environment, with the optimum logistics. Therefore, it minimizes the possible risks of contamination, and it doesn’t cause any swelling of the top covers of trays and Gastronorms. Last but not least, it allows keeping clean the containers intended for the transport of the meals themselves.
Giving the floor to our customers
Below you will find Mila’s – a client of ours – customer testimonial:
“We have been using the ACS film for 6 months now and we have solved all the issues related to swelling. The proper degassing optimises the packaging of cold ready meals too and, particularly for cheeses like Gorgonzola or very aged cheeses, the olfactory impact is greatly improved. As we all know, odours produced by prepared meals after their transport and once the traditional film removed are very “intrusive”. Instead, the ACS system provides a gradual degassing which makes every meal more pleasing”.
Our ambitious look
We at Effegidi have shared our expertise with Geri Service: our fields are very distant, our paths are so different from each other. Nonetheless, they can converge and lead to amazing results. Since we believe that “alone we go faster, together we go further”. And further is exactly where we want to go…
Put us to the test: tell us what type of container you use, and we will help you to make it safe!
If you want to find out more about our brand new ACS system, please write us (info@acs-system.it or https://www.effegidi.com/en/contacts/) to request our dedicated brochure!
We are looking forward to hearing from you!
One of our team’s latest “signings” tells us a story of insight and foresight, where Effegidi and its customers grow together in a spirit of mutual trust.
CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR CAREER PATH AND HOW DID YOU JOIN EFFEGIDI?
I’m a Sales Manager specialised in Flexible Packaging and an expert on an international level in sales and coordination, in both family businesses and multinational companies. In particular, I’m focused on managing medium to large and key account customers.
I joined Effegidi in 2020, being committed to supporting and enhancing the company growth in the Packaging field. Since then, my mission has been to put to good use the knowledge in the field I’ve gained in most of the Flexible Packaging markets and technologies. Moreover, I’m sure I can rely on a strong professional network throughout Europe.
WHAT DO YOU DO WITHIN THE COMPANY?
At present I’m an Area Manager, mainly in the fields relating to the aluminium sheet.
In this corporate role, I have responsibility for winning new customers both in Italy and in Europe in the traditional business areas of our company. Moreover, I’m in charge of seeking out new opportunities in tune with Effegidi’s corporate vocation, which are expressed in various products, markets and fields.
On an internal level, I deal with different corporate departments and in particular with the supply chain, constantly looking for the best synthesis of my customers’ needs with those of my company.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR CONTRIBUTION TO EFFEGIDI?
Thanks to my daily selling activity and my strong background of personal experience and skills, I can bring to the company a significant information support which is always up to date, together with an in-depth understanding of the Flexible Packaging field.
Since I regularly communicate with the market, I arouse a keen interest in Effegidi, thus contributing to the further growth of its reputation. I also create new fruitful business opportunities and I establish strong relationships with new customers. In other words, I lay the foundations for sound and long-lasting partnerships, thus developing a mutual trust with our customers.
As a natural outgrowth of the work I do every day, the number of our customers, our turnover and margins continue to rise.
I’ve always been deeply concerned about the future of our planet, and I’m dedicated to promoting sustainability whenever I get the chance. I think this is a crucial issue.
WHERE DO YOU SEE EFFEGIDI IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS?
Because of the ongoing commitment and substantial investments made by the owners of our company, Effegidi has become fully conscious of its own value: we are at the cutting edge of technology, and we are building an outstanding reputation in our market. In the mid-term, we will be able to fully express all our potential vocations. In Effegidi’s future I see the capability of creating value together with our customers: in this way, we will reach our goals for a fruitful growth in the long run.
Thank you, Lucio, for your resolution and your wonderful food for thought. Welcome aboard Effegidi! We are ready to sail to more sustainable horizons with you…
