ROTACOAT Pisa-based company founded in May 2019, has become a major player in the international tanning market in just a few years
A concentration of concepts projected into the next decade thanks to its new models of rotary coating machines that have all the necessary features and offer the improvements needed to guarantee strong innovation to current technology applied to coating machines. This is the prestigious calling card of ROTACOAT, an innovative start-up founded in May 2019 and specialised in the production of roller finishing machines.
“We started just over four years ago,” confirms general manager Lorenzo Simoni, whom we interviewed at the beginning of the summer, “because I sensed that there might be opportunities to improve existing products. It is in the DNA of our company to be driven to innovate and to go down roads that have not yet been travelled. For this reason, we never feel we have arrived and we always aim to improve; we never stop, we are always looking for new solutions and we are convinced that our buffers are a step ahead of the competition’.
What do you offer as a point of strength in the market?
“The J1 machines, which are designed to efficiently and uniformly apply a wide variety of finishing chemicals, in particular the J1 3400 model, undoubtedly the top of the range. The market reacted immediately well and there was great enthusiasm from tanning companies. We took our J1 machine to the Tanning Tech show in Milan in February 2020, the last exhibition event before the closure due to Covid. Since then, despite the closure due to Covid and the other problems and difficulties that have arisen in recent years, we have continued to work with incredible results. We were convinced that we could arouse curiosity and interest, but in such a peculiar period for the entire world economy, we never imagined that we would be able to perform so well.
What possibilities does this technology offer in connection with the new roller finishing approach?
“The use of different products, such as resins for impregnation and fatliquors with oils and waxes, both hot and cold, highly viscous products such as fillers, putty and prebottoms on both buffed and full grain leathers and splits, pigments of all types, even foamed, for basecoats and covers, and water-based fixing agents. In particular, with this range it is possible to reverse-finish sheep and goat skins, half bovine skins, splits and full grain leathers and cover an almost total variety of articles, even the softest ones, from very thin thicknesses (0.4 mm) for clothing, upholstery and automotive interiors to thicker articles for footwear and leather goods. These machines are able to uniformly reverse-coat from very few grams per square foot of product up to very large quantities (up to even 50 g/q.ft.) in a single pass, where necessary. Our long experience in the field has given us the opportunity to prove that what exists can indeed always be improved.
What are the strengths and merits of the J1 models, which are recognised by Italian and foreign tanneries? Furthermore, what are the strengths of Rotacoat?
“The J1 is a versatile machine like no other, capable of outperforming the market for every type of application. Added to this is the very high quality of the services offered by Rotacoat, which has always believed in the importance of maintaining a direct and continuous dialogue with its clients, from whom we often receive some ideas for further improvement, which the technical department always evaluates with great care and without any discrimination. We are constantly at the tannery technicians’ side with the hope and conviction that we can help them to always improve their product with innovative solutions. To date, the machine already has three patents, also at international level, and others are being studied”.
What is the main aspect that defines you in the leather sector?
“From the very beginning, our business strategy has been to understand where clients were experiencing the biggest problems, both in production and in finishing, which then determines the quality of the final article, plus other aspects such as downtime and maintenance. We have worked hard to optimise these aspects. Currently, ROTACOAT is an innovative reality that has exceeded the business plan and expectations every year: in 2022 the turnover was almost 3.5 million euro, a great result.
How are you structured commercially?
“We are creating an extensive network worldwide, which is necessary as we have clients and potential clients in the main countries of Europe, the East and America, with requests constantly and definitely increasing. As far as exports are concerned, we are not concentrated in certain areas or states, our sales network is aimed at identifying potential customers, and then understanding what needs they have and where they want to position themselves: almost always with a machine with a certain added value, they are able to achieve results that were previously unthinkable, as well as the possibility of creating innovative articles and making high-performance garments. A number of clients have purchased the first unit followed shortly after by a second, clear proof that the product is doing well and has exceeded the expectations of those who included it in their work cycle. Recently, a foreign tannery that had purchased one of our first models added two more for a total of three.
Is there a possibility of incorporating the machine within a plant with different processing systems?
“Absolutely yes, we have also considered this. In particular, the machine can be inserted on finishing lines with release paper, so it can be adapted to machines that differ both in structure and processing. Everything is designed and structured so that there are no limitations for those who need a more complex line: specifically, it can be made up of both the spray and the coating machine, or alternatively just the latter, depending on the overall dimensions or other production requirements of the client, which must always be precisely identified so that we can advise them on the best choice to make. We are also working on coating machines for the textile sector and on alternative materials to leather, precisely in order to satisfy clients with different requirements.
What about your commitment to sustainability?
“Having the good fortune of being established only a few years ago, Rotacoat technology fits perfectly in line with the policies in support of the environment; in fact, our technology allows us to contribute in a significant way to the reduction of energy, water and chemical consumption, as well as to the complete reduction of emissions into the atmosphere. These are goals we set ourselves immediately, now energy and water savings have also become a necessity from an economic point of view”.
Lorenzo Simoni
