Established in 1919, Yamazaki Mazak started as a maker of pots and pans in Japan before venturing into the manufacturing of machining tools. More than a century later, the Nagoya-based company has operations around the world and leads the industry with its advanced DONE-IN-ONE machining solutions that include multi-tasking centers and laser processing machines.
Yamazaki Mazak set up an office in Italy in 1989. Since then, the Milan-based operations has grown to become the company’s largest in Europe.
“From 2015 until now, we have hired more than 45 people. In terms of territorial coverage and service, I can say that we are the best one in Italy. We have also increased the number of sales people in our territory. In 2015, we had between 40 and 48 people in sales. Now, we are over 60. This means higher availability, higher accuracy, and higher value,” Yamazaki Mazak Italia Managing Director Marco Casanova told GMI POST.
Casanova attributes part of the company’s success to the American-style management that it adopted.
“We make decisions horizontally, which means that all the employees are really involved in the strategic decisions,” he said.
While the machine tool business is cyclical and goes through seasonal slowdowns, Casanova believes that Yamazaki Mazak Italia will continue to grow because its mostly Italian clientele values the Japanese brand of quality control.
“The Japan headquarters appreciates the way Italians talk to our dealers. We have won their trust, which takes a lot. It also takes a while to build confidence with Japanese. But when you do, this is forever,” Casanova said.
