INTERVIEW WITH WALTER BAGGINI, FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT OF COMEC ITALIA

Walter Baggini speaks slowly, weighing every word. The questions that I have made are accurate and it is clear that with equally precise words he wants to tell me the story of his company. In fact “precision” is one of the key terms to understand the work of Comec Italia.

He sat in front of me on a morning like any other, without making an appointment, since both he is always here: in his company, among its employees. Exceeded the threshold of seventy oversees yet with determined attitude and careful look at the daily work.

The headquarters of Comec Italia is in the artisan district of Cavaria, in that busy area between Varese and Milan. Here in 1970 he founded the company, which at the beginning, however, deals with a different type of print: constructs presses for hot stamping of T-shirts.
What was the decisive idea for the foundation of the company as we know it today?

The decision to change. Yes, the story of Comec Italia begins with a change: grappling with the crisis in the textile, I realized that the way forward was not already marked, we had to have courage and good ideas for change. So we brought in Italy a new type of printing: pad printing. We were the first in fact to produce printing machines on an industrial scale in the country. And it went well!

Since then there have been tons of steel, gears, silicone, kilometers of wires and circuits, liters and liters of ink, millions of printed objects of all kinds and then phone calls, emails, travel … Today Comec Italia is a dynamic company that creates machines for printing on any type of object, also custom-made. Counts among its customers some of the most important international companies manufacturers of household appliances, automobiles, various utensils. Based on some simple data, shape and material of the object to be printed, number of color printing, hourly desired amount of production, the company’s engineers are able to recommend the most suitable machine among those already in production, or to design one specifically for the needs of the customer.

What is the best feature of your company in your opinion?

From the beginning, we do everything ourselves. We can build a machine from scratch, from carpentry to mechanical processing to the electric cabling and software and painting. Our work takes place in full cycle, autonomy is the watchword.

In addition, we put our customers in a position to have a single source for everything related to the pad printing, providing supplies such as pads, inks, plates and cliché already engraved, and auxiliary devices such as ovens, photoexposures, washing machines.

But above all, we operate in an industrial size with an artisanal spirit. That is, we devote great attention to all stages of the manufacturing process, just like artisans, meticulously checking every detail. Every machine we produce is destined for a company in which it will work accurately and make as much as possible: our craftsmanship is first and foremost respect for the work of our customers.

How do you see the future of Comec Italia?

Today the Comec Italia clientele is at least 70% abroad. This allows us to have a broader view of the market. Our goal now, as we are solidly present in some traditional markets like the United States, Eastern Europe, North Africa, is expanding in those countries that still do not fully know the technology of which we are producers, but that are projected in perspective development, in Asia, in South America, in Africa.

The so-called globalization of the market and work encourages us to an ever more focused training of our staff, both in terms of technology (electronics, automation) that the knowledge of languages. The work never stops!

It seems that the work is calling him because greets me, wishes me a good job, and renews its availability. In his small bright eyes there is a light of joy and awareness. That’s how you create every day something that lasts.