With more than 60 years’ experience b manufacturer of forged steel flanges. Oil & Gas, General Manager Eugenio M is approved by all major chemical, petro by Imogen Ward
ehind it, Metalfar is an industry-leading
In an exclusive interview with Inside Messa explained why the company ochemical and oil companies. Report
Metalfar has been incredibly successful over its 62-year history, serving the Americas, Africa, Europe and Southeast Asia from its headquarters in Italy. The reason for this success? A consistent dedication to its customers and the quality of its products.
“Our history is woven with key values,” General Manager Eugenio Messa explained. “Those values, and the quality of our products, are never compromised. This commitment has provided us with all the major approvals in our sector.”
Located in Cesana Brianza, Italy, on premises covering 600,000 square feet, the company has the capacity to manufacture 60,000 tonnes annually. The production of carbon, alloy and stainless-steel flanges are included in this capacity, alongside forged steel fittings, valves and tailor-made products. This customised option accounts for around 10-20% of the company’s overall production rate. On top of this, Metalfar can also manufacture its products to all grades and standards.
Added value at every stage
With such diverse capabilities, it is no wonder that last year the company witnessed a 40% increase in turnover. Metalfar accredited this achievement to two factors – the first being an increase in costing, transitions nicely into the second element: the ability to employ new material grades, that are of added value, into its production processes.
That added value is essential to the company. With a customer-centric
approach, Metalfar does everything possible to ensure it provides an experience that is quality-driven and stress-free.
The company was one of the first in Italy to gain the ISO 9001 certification and always makes sure to have a high level of stock in store to prevent any delays in production. An additional bonus of this vigilance is the ability to work to enormous quantity requirements whilst meeting prompt delivery times.
With quality assurance always in mind Metalfar also abides by European requirements, working solely with European suppliers.
“All our supplier partnerships are formed on mutual trust,” said Mr Messa. “Of course, today we could buy material from anywhere, but we find those personal relationships crucial, and select suppliers and partners based on that.
“Metalfar’s major suppliers are steel mills, and we make sure to see them once every two months to continue to strengthen those relationships. We only buy services and materials from European countries –especially Italy – for two reasons:
“Firstly, it is easier to create those personal relationships with companies
who are close to us. The second reason is related to requirements. A lot of the time, we are required to work exclusively with European material. We, of course, have nothing against suppliers from other continents, but we must follow the rules and expectations placed upon us.”
According to Mr Messa, this relationshipbased philosophy is also extended to the company’s employees: “For me, working at Metalfar is much more than being just an employee. I get to be a part of building something great, but no one can achieve anything alone, even more so nowadays. I am incredibly lucky to have a team of people who are keen to support myself and the company.
“In response to that support, we are quick to offer training every day, to ensure everyone is constantly improving to meet their full potential.”
Forging new opportunities
Keen to set a precedent for growth, Metalfar has recently diversified: after spending the past 60 years focused on the oil and gas industry, the company has broken into a new market.
“For success to continue, it is crucial to always remain forward-thinking,”
Mr Messa said. “As part of our ability to do so, we recently began manufacturing for the automotive industry. This is a new and incredibly exciting sector that we are looking forward to exploring.
“We are always willing to adapt ourselves to meet the needs of customers. Currently, in the US there is a big demand for stainless steel; so of course, we have adapted to this area, to remain competitive in all material grades.”
Not afraid to invest in improvements, three years ago Metalfar also purchased
some NORSOK-approved E treatment equipment, which is now running 24/7. The company has also recently invested in new robotics which are being incorporated to improve the efficiency of operations.
These are just more reasons why Metalfar is approved by more than 60 engineering and oil companies worldwide, including major players Shell, Aramco and bp.
Sustainable solutions
Alongside the company’s active manufacturing projects, it is also working on internal plans relating to its carbon footprint. Currently using a lot of water to cool equipment, Metalfar has made plans to introduce a new system to reuse this water. All being well, this system is expected to be operational in the next two years.
“We also actively try to reduce our use of plastic,” Mr Messa said. “But the major sustainability project that we are currently involved with will introduce green raw materials into our production processes, which have a much smaller carbon impact.
By 2024, we anticipate these will account for 50 per cent of our overall raw material usage. We are going to continue to focus on this project over the next few years.”
Metalfar regularly attends events, including ADIPEC. Whilst doing so, the company also takes the time to visit its customers. This has enabled the company to commit to its customer-centric approach in a more sustainable way.
“Having previously exhibited at ADIPEC in the past, we have changed our strategy,” Mr Messa said: “Now going as an attendee, we can combine the advantages of the ADIPEC platform with visits to our customers in that region. So we will spend one day at the event, and then the remaining days will be dedicated to customer appointments.
“We believe the Gulf is the place to be in the world, and we want to be a part of that,” he concluded. “The Emirates and Qatar are booming, and we strongly believe that we need to put our efforts into becoming a piece of this growth.” n
