With the recent acquisition of OMAS SpA, Van Berkel International Srl, part of Rovagnati Group, continues its growth and commitment as the most prestigious company in the world for high-quality food slicers and processing equipment.

Van Berkel International Srl operates two production plants, in Italy (Albizzate) and India (Chennai), and a knife production centre in Maniago (Pordenone), with approximately seventy employees in total.

Founded in 1949, OMAS SpA has two production sites in Italy, both in the province of Varese, one for food slicers and processing equipment (Oggiona S. Stefano) and the other an aluminium foundry (Besnate), employing a total of 83 employees.

Already a market leader in 1898, when the well-known BERKEL brand was conceived, Van Berkel International Group offers its customers top end food slicers (professional and domestic) as well as a wide range of food processing equipment.

Giuliano Reas, General Manager of Van Berkel International Group, explains, “the purpose of the acquisition is to leverage the scope of both brands to consolidate Van Berkel International’s leadership in the high-end slicer segment. If Berkel is recognized throughout the world for making slicers a symbol of excellence and tradition in history, OMAS founded its brand based on the same principles and thus has affirmed itself over the years due to the high quality of its machines and the deep penetration in foreign markets”.

Therefore, the business plan envisages an expansion of the product offerings and penetration of new markets. Reas continues by saying, “we want to grow in the United States, where we opened a new branch in Miami last year, and in India, where we invested in a new and improved production site that, in the last two years, has increased the production volume of over 10,000 units/year, about half of the Group’s total production; the rest will be manufactured in the Italian plants.”

Orsoni is a historical Venetian furnace that uses the same traits since 1888 to produce 24K gold leaf mosaics and enamels in more than 3,500 colors. While it is a traditional Italian company, rather than relying on the past, Orsoni focuses on innovation. The company seeks to convey emotions through its uniqueness and attention to detail, all firmly rooted in its passion for excellence.

Orsoni’s “color library“, is a timeless environment that preserves almost 3,500 enamels of different tones and shades from which was born the famous panel by Angelo Orsoni. This piece of art was displayed for the first time at the Universal Exhibition in Paris back in 1889, where Antonio Gaudí, the Spanish architect, was amazed with its beauty. Since then, Gaudí decided to use Orsoni mosaics in the construction of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain.

Orsoni is involved with the realization of several iconic buildings and projects such as: Trocadero and Le Sacre-Coeur in Paris, Saint Paul Cathedral in London, Rudolph Nureyev’s tomb in Paris, Norman Rockwell’s Golden Rule recreated in mosaics and many other masterpieces of Arabic and Oriental architecture.

During Milan Design Week 2017 the company introduced a world premiere -Fascino by Orsoni™- and revolutionized the surfaces industry by being the first company to launch a surface with real micro diamonds.

Orsoni will be one of the historic companies in the Venice Biennale (May 13th – November 11th, 2017), which the Pavilion Venezia will host as evidence of handcrafted Venetian artistic excellence.

In 2003, TREND Group, the world’s leading full-body glass mosaic, gold mosaic and Venetian enamel designer and producer, incorporated Orsoni and demonstrated a unique ability to synthesize the essential principles of Italian tradition with the dynamic creativity of today’s most celebrated designers, architects and artists. This was accomplished while maintaining a commitment to environmental concerns and cultural vibrancy.