SAT (SURFACE ALUMINIUM TECHNOLOGIES) S.p.A is an Italian engineering company dedicated to design, produce and install aluminium extrusions surface finishing equipment and packaging systems. SAT has earned the reputation of a market leader in finishing equipment market after 35 years of offering innovative solutions, which are now recognized as worldwide standards.  AlCircle spoke to Andrea Trevisan, Sales Manager, SAT and discussed about the company, its business and the current and potential market for SAT.

CUBE Trevisan, the first Vertical Powder Coating Line in the world

Here is a brief excerpt from the interview:

AlCircle: Please, tell us in brief about the history and current business profile of SAT.

Andrea Trevisan: SAT (Surface Aluminium Technology) S.p.A is an Italian engineering company dedicated to design, produce and install aluminium extrusions surface finishing equipment.

Active in the aluminium industry global market since the early 80s – when the first vertical powder coating lines were introduced in Europe by the TREVISAN family, SAT has sold more than 370 finishing lines for aluminium extrusions worldwide.

SAT provides different equipment: TREVISAN Vertical Powder Coating Lines; the revolutionary CUBE, the first Vertical Powder Coating Compact Line in the world; FOX, that allows to perform the Flash Oxidizing pre-treatment automatically and in-line along a Vertical Powder Coating Line; EZY, for the Wood Effect Machine; AUTEL, for the anodizing and packing lines.

CUBE Trevisan, the first Vertical Powder Coating Line in the world

AlCircle: What are the latest projects and future endeavours of SAT S.p.A?

Andrea Trevisan: We are living an excellent 2017- in fact, since the beginning of the year, we have sold more than 20 plants. We have just concluded the commissioning of the first Cube Line in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; we are finalizing the test of a Vertical Coating Plant in United Kingdom; we are assembling the first CUBE Vertical Powder Coating Compact line in Portugal.

Our projects for the immediate future are interesting and exciting,  we are shortly starting the installation of the latest vertical coating line with Flash Oxidizing technology in Greece.

Then we are moving to Australia to install another Cube Plant, the third Vertical Powder Coating Compact plant in the Oceanian Country.

Finally, we are landing in Bahrain to proceed with the assembly of the first Vertical Line in the Gulf Area equipped with SAT Smart-Coat vision and recognition system, able to recognize the cross section of profiles that are loaded on the line with the aim to automatically complete the coating process.

AlCircle: SAT S.p.A. is the worldwide leader in vertical powder coating plants. Please tell us in brief about SAT’s technology behind these special plants.

Andrea Trevisan: We always make this simple example- if you had one paint brush, what direction would you coat one piece of extrusion? Vertical is the most natural way to do it.

A vertical coating line means high productivity, better quality and lower operational costs. When my grandfather Eng. Ferdinando Trevisan installed the first vertical system in Europe, he was afraid that the market could quickly saturate because of the massive production that one single vertical line could provide. Even after visiting hundreds of vertical lines, I am myself always impressed with the quantity of aluminium that you can feed the line with.

Then, aluminium powder coating became more and more attractive for several industries and the market never stopped growing. Actually, in these last 35 years, the market demands varied through the years: from a request of high productivity in the 80s, the 90s saw the request of higher flexibility (because of wider range of colours were demanded).

In the 2000s (before the global financial crisis hit the market) the flexibility became essential, with constantly smaller order lots. Finally, we see a constant growing need of process traceability and environmental awareness, so our lines are now more automated and with low consumption (powder, water, thermal and electrical energy) than ever.

It’s very interesting the industry we are operating in, and we are proud to say that we see the advantages provided by our technologies being exploited by our customers all over the world: from mature markets like Europe or developing countries like Brazil, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka or Thailand.

EZY, the Powder on Powder Wood Effect decoration

AlCircle:  SAT S.p.A has supplied Vertical Powder Coating Plant for extruders in China and Qatar. Tell us in brief about your Asian market.

Andrea Trevisan: In the last few months, we have installed an innovative vertical powder coating line in Foshan for the company JMA, a pacesetter enterprise in China's aluminium profiles industry. Middle East region is also performing a very important role in the aluminium global market. SAT has installed in the recent years more than 15 lines, including Cube Vertical Powder Coating Compact Plant, Trevisan Vertical Powder Coating Lines, EZY Wood Effect Machines, and FOX - the Flash Oxidizing pre-treatment.

Moreover, we have just signed a contract for a Vertical Powder Coating Line with Alumex, a very important Sri Lankan company active in the field of aluminium profiles since 1986. This is a very important and challenging project for us, since it represents the first SAT Vertical Plant in that Asian Country.

Finally, we are about to start the installation of our second vertical coating line for an important aluminium extrusion company in Uzbekistan, after the first installed in 2015.

FOX, the automatic Flash OXidizing pre-treatment in-line along a Vertical Powder Coating Line

AlCircle: As an equipment and packaging service provider to the aluminium extrusion sector, which country has the best market potential for SAT S.p.A?

Andrea Trevisan: SAT is a company that works almost 100% outside Italy; our most recent projects have been carried out in Australia, France, Brazil, Paraguay and Spain.

The European market is very active, for example in England, where aluminium has taken a big step forward compared to competing materials (PVC and wood) for windows and doors.

Also, we are witnessing the massive awakening of the Iberian market: Spain and Portugal were our main market in the first years of the years 2000, and the majority of those lines are still successfully operating. In this optic, the new technologies we have invested in - that can also be included in existing lines - allows us both to improve the quality of the finished product and to reduce the running costs of the plant.

We believe that there is big potential for aluminium growth and consequently for our products in India and South-East Region. The new vertical line we recently installed in Thailand and the new line we will install in Sri Lanka will surely be important references to start expanding our presence there. 

AlCircle: What are the strengths of SAT S.p.A that makes it the preferred engineering technology provider among its global customers?

Andrea Trevisan: SAT keeps its position at the forefront of the sector thanks to a continuous development and a constant technological evolution applied to satisfy our customers’ needs.

The finishing equipment business is a niche market characterized by the use of highly specialized machinery.

Customers’ trust is crucial and even a single mistake in such a small market, can have very negative consequences. The name SAT/Trevisan, over the years, has always been synonymous of vertical coating lines associated with high quality in all its products.

The constant evolution, development and commercialization of new technologies for our customers, and the role of market leaders, are the values that most characterize our company.

SAT Anodizing Line

AlCircle: How do you justify Italy’s engineering expertise in the metal processing sector?

Andrea Trevisan: It is true that Italy is leader in the metal engineering expertise, especially for aluminium. Whether the product is an extrusion press or an automatic warehouse system, extrusions dyes or a vertical coating line, we see customers all over the world coming to see and purchase these technologies.

Probably, not having the natural resources of other countries, we Italians had to focus on the process and the technologies to make it happen always in a better way.

I believe the most important thing is the trust of customers; we know that we cannot bear a failure and disappoint one customer; the kind of machinery that we supply is crucial in the overall supply chain of an aluminium factory and so our success is based on a total commitment to the customers. I believe that around the world, in the aluminium industry, they know that working with an Italian company means to have a trustworthy partner that will always make that extra step to keep the customer satisfied.

AlCircle: As a supplier to the aluminium industry, what is your view on the potential of aluminium in various end user sectors?

Andrea Trevisan:  Aluminium is a very smart material, on one side for its characteristics (light, ductile, resistant, etc.) and on the other side for the simple fact that it can be recycled an infinite number of times.

Our main target market is architectural applications of aluminium. We see an increasing interest for aluminium everywhere in comparison to PVC or wood, because of its versatility.

According to the specific conditions of the final user environment, aluminium can be prepared in the most proper way: for example, in very aggressive environments (seaside or polluted areas), there is a specific technology (flash anodizing as pretreatment before coating) that guarantees long lasting protection against corrosion. In cold areas like northern Europe, thermal break windows system allows to have incredibly high insulating performance, making homes more comfortable and environmental friendly.

So, we believe that in future aluminium will become predominant in the windows/doors fabrication.

Disclaimer: “The information presented herein is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional advice. The views and opinions shared in the interview section of www.alcircle.com are unique to the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of www.alcircle.com."