The entrepreneur’s imprint

«…do well what had previously been done less well, and do for the first time what had previously been disregarded»*. This seems to be, in a nutshell, Nimax’s current underlying strategy. There’s much more to discover, however, in our interview with Nicola Montanari, in particular, regarding values and people.

Stefano Lavorini

It’s possible to talk about continuous improvement in many ways but, in the end, the ultimate meaning is, perhaps, that of working without reservations towards perfection.

We have confirmation of this in the words of Nicola Montanari, CEO of Nimax, when he explains to us how this Bologna-based industrial enterprise, one of the Italian protagonists in the field of solutions for coding and marking, inspection and control systems, traceability and labelling, is changing profoundly. Nimax is a company in which everyone works, each with their appropriate contribution, to implement an effective ethical vision of the company with the values of social and environmental sustainability.

Founded 54 years ago in Bologna, it’s composed of a team of professionals and operates in Italy with 3 sites and with valid international partners such as Domino Printing and Loma Systems, as well as with Nemesis, a recent new member of the group.

«Nimax has changed over the years thanks to the contribution of the people that have grown inside the company, to their commitment, their spirit of initiative and their ability to work as a team. It is also, however, thanks to our “more expert than us” associates, with experience in larger organisations, who have contributed new skills and mentalities: talented people, perhaps with strong characters, who can and want to have their say. We are, moreover, grateful also to the people that no longer work with us, because we always build on the foundations, that is, on the work of those who have preceded us. The wellbeing of our workers is a priority which has led us to develop together welfare activities, very interesting events and projects, including, for example, the company apiary on the roof with a live webcam, the gym, the day out with Bologna bike-sharing bicycles…

The desire to do our work well is fundamental; we’re convinced, in fact, that everything else comes somehow by itself, including the turnover; because we believe so strongly in an ethical approach that we would prefer to do without an order rather than make a “hit and run” sale. We aim to do the right thing, in short, rather than what’s convenient, and we believe, with some satisfaction, that the market recognizes this».

Be who you are

In particular, Nimax is known for its offer of Domino Printing inkjet and laser coding and marking systems: a collaboration that has been renewed over many years, despite the fact that the world is changing increasingly quickly.

«This partnership, in fact, is based on mutual benefits. Domino markets its products in over 120 countries thanks to a series of subsidiaries in major countries such as the USA, China and India, and through distributors, among which Nimax is the most important. For Domino, we are, moreover, the 40th customer at world level, making us a prestigious partner. Nimax, however, is more generally a point of reference for industrial line manufacturers and for companies that need to install not only coding and marking systems, but also inspection, control and labelling devices in their production processes. Proof of this is that, at the end of 2023, we acquired a qualified majority shareholding in the Modena company, Nemesis srl, a key operator in the design and manufacture of in-line industrial weighers, with 75% of its turnover generated in international markets».

This acquisition obviously represents a fundamental step in Nimax’s foreign market development path, given that it allows it to further diversify its activities and increase its presence in the sector, taking on board high-level expertise. In this regard, Montanari underlines that

«it’s a strategic operation, strengthening the role of both companies thanks to the sharing of know-how, sales networks and the optimization of services and cost centres with relative economic benefits. We believe that this synergic collaboration opens up significant growth and innovation opportunities for both companies, allowing us to offer customers, that is, end users and OEMs, even more competitive and cutting-edge services».

How and why

This move by Nimax is certainly “not to reinvent the wheel”, in the light of the consolidated collaborations with top brands such as Domino and Loma, but is rather is a push for excellence with Nemesis in a market niche like that of sorting machines, aiming at proposing integrated solutions. For this reason, at the latest Cibus Tec, Nimax and Nemesis presented themselves together with PRL Tecnosoft with the objective of offering a response to the industrial world’s ever growing need to reduce the number of suppliers, assigning their lines to integrated networks able to offer more complete solutions.

«Over time – Montanari points out – we have realised that it isn’t enough to continue to sell marking systems in what is, moreover, an increasingly crowded and competitive market, but that we could aim at becoming technology aggregators. This was noticed during the recent edition of the trade fair in Parma, where we created a virtual exhibition thanks to the connection with our permanent professionally managed showroom in Bologna».

It’s a solution that already today allows us to meet the needs of customers who, at any time and without moving, can see in operation the machine or line they are interested in. But that’s not all, as the manager once more points out.

«To improve technical assistance, we have developed the MyNimax APP, which makes use of augmented reality technologies, through which we are able, via the customer’s mobile phone, to observe the line and show the customer, therefore not suggest to them, how to intervene in real time. It’s possible with the same app to acquire spare parts and consumables, or to consult manuals and tutorials.

We are well aware that an hour of machine stoppage means money lost and we are also aware that our machines do not in themselves add value to the customer’s product: no one would ever buy a different brand of mineral water only because it has been marked by a Domino laser. The real added value, therefore, comes from a service that ensures the operativity of the line at the maximum of its possibilities. We want to be useful and not indispensable. We are not the ones who keep the customer; we want the customer to not want to leave us».

In medio stat virtus

Over the years Nimax has made the updating of products and services a competitive factor. This today increasingly means developing 4.0 solutions, since timeliness and information are the two key words for the successful management of a line.

Montanari has no doubts about this:

«Today, collecting data and transferring them to the production line is easier, but in general, evolved MES and ERP are unable to reach the machines unless with simple instructions (for example, “print this variable data”).

There is also vertical software that drives a single machine, but it’s not able to manage the data and ignores all the other units in the line. What is missing, in other words, is something which makes it possible to interconnect management systems and MES to the control system of the single machine and it is here that we come in, with the Line Strategy solution. It’s a software system that makes it possible, with a single tool also when there are a number of machines and technologies made by different manufacturers, to have full control of the production line or of the entire factory. The solution is simple and modular, and can be implemented in a time period according to different needs, for controlling and receiving feedback in practically real time from all the devices in the line.

The system activates and sets up control logics on the lines, monitors efficiency and signals anomalies in order to allow for the withdrawal of defective lots and reduce waste. The software, therefore, acquires production data which are then exported and organised via Business Intelligence software into functional reports on the basis of the specific analysis needs of the different departments (quality control, logistics, marketing and production)».

With our feet on the ground, today and tomorrow

Nimax is an enterprise, a family-owned group, with an industrial culture developed thanks to involvement over the years in the activities of large companies, something that has always favoured process and product innovation, development of the strategic plan and the transformation of the business model.

«Today technologies change so quickly - Montanari comments – that it seems to us short-sighted to embark on long-term projects, even though we are always on the search for innovative solutions that can prove to be a breakthrough. We prefer to work to become a strategic group able to meet strategic needs that make sense from an industrial point of view. That is why we have other acquisitions in mind. Our logic – which is not financial – is to grow by taking on board businesses that can be integrated to enrich our offer».