In this week’s blog we thought we’d talk about the Italians and what we think they’re really good at. The Italian reputation precedes them:  they sure know how to dress and cook some great food. But recently we realised how much Italian Engineering we had in our range, and thought it was time to pay tribute to the Italians.

We’ve all known that the Italians have a wonderful tradition of engineering. Much of Europe still displays wonderful examples of Roman viaducts and civil structure. We also know they know how to build cars with character and passion, from the some of the cutest bambina to some of the most beautiful super cars in the world (such as the Ferrari 355). Their engineering ability is world renown, and it’s easy to showcase on things like cars and motorbikes. Unfortunately many Italian marques have suffered from a poor reputation for reliability (Ask your average Alfa Romeo owner) and it seems like they’ve been beaten by the Germans and the Japanese. What has intrigued us has been the ability of smaller Italian Companies to produce really smart and very reliable items that don’t attract anywhere near the same attention such red Ferrari or Ducati.

Talk to just about any economist and they’ll tell you that the Italian economy seems to be treading water, at best. Many of the Italian banks and major manufacturers are struggling, but behind all the window dressing and beautiful shoes is the smaller Italian manufacturer making a vast array of smart reliable gear. It may be surprising to know that all the pumps on our water blasters are designed and made in Italy. Our large SEP Rotary Hoe is made in Italy. Our Alberti  steam cleaner (as the name suggests) is made in Italy. Our latest acquisition, our Cormidi Motorised barrow, is also made in Italy. This unit is really smart, with a unique centre of gravity, an ingenious track system and high dumping capacity.

All these manufacturers have one thing in common: they are all family owned companies, who take quality and service to heart, and therefore design and manufacture the very best. We can’t fault them for reliability. We love some of the smart features they’ve designed into a rather mundane pieces of kit.

We just hope they continue to focus on cars and clothing and machinery, and are too busy to worry about a yacht race in Auckland in about four years’ time.