Ceramica Rondine: our history

Italcer Group. The Luxury Cluster.

Italcer Group operates in the ceramic sector, manufacturing high-quality outdoor and indoor ceramic products, with a focus on high-end residential and non residential eramic tiles, and luxury bathroom furnishing. Italcer is controlled by Investitile S.p.A. led by the Italian investment fund Mandarin Capital Partners II and Graziano Verdi.

A successful history

1961 was a year of epoch-making changes, part of a period in history characterized by particular economic, cultural and social élan. On 20 January 1961, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th President of the USA. On 12 April 1961 the astronaut Jurij Gagarin was the first human being to journey into outer space. Rondine S.p.A. was founded in the summer of the same year, and soon took root in an area between Reggio Emilia and Modena. Ceramica Rondine today is one of the most flourishing industrial groups in the sector.
A trip through the first 50 years of the company’s history is more than just a way to celebrate the results achieved; it is also an opportunity to take stock, a useful way to look towards the future, towards new challenges, new targets.
The enthusiasm of the early days has remained unchanged; indeed it has gone from strength to strength, together with the company’s results. These results are giving us the vitality to move on, without ever resting on our laurels.
New products, innovative technologies, research and development, quality, design and respect for the environment: these are the values that have guided Rondine through this first half century of history, and that continue to show us the road ahead, both today and tomorrow.

The stages of growth

1961

1961 saw the foundation of Rondine S.p.A., the core that grew into today’s leading industrial Group in the production of porcelain stoneware tiles for floors, walls and skirtings.

1997

1997 marked a watershed, with the entry into the Group of the current management team, bringing a fresh injection of energy into business, production and management.

2001

September 2001 saw the inauguration of the porcelain stoneware manufacturing plant in Rubiera. Renewed throughout and featuring cuttingedge technology.

2005

May 2005 saw the acquisition of SprayDry, a Sassuolo company that produces porcelain stoneware bodies, thus allowing Rondine to make a major leap forward in terms of quality by covering the full tile production cycle in its own plants.

2006

During 2006 the private equity company PROGRESSIO SGR joins Rondine Group becoming a new shareholder. In the same year digital technology made its debut in Rondine Group.

2010

Sadon, a leading company in the production of porcelain stoneware skirting and small-size tiles, joined the Group in 2010, marking a further important turning point in the history of Rondine Group.

2011

New shareholding structure in December 2011. Lauro Giacobazzi and family, and the private equity fund PROGRESSIO SGR, already the main shareholders, purchases 100% of the shares of Rondine S.p.a.

2013

In June 2013, the private equity fund PROGRESSIO SGR transferred its shares to Seramiksan, one of the largest ceramic manufacturers in Turkey. The company boasts a long industrial tradition, deeply rooted in the Turgutlu-Manisa area, just 50 km from Izmir.

2015

In January 2015, significant investments were made, with the extension of a production facility, new lines for handling large sizes, automatic sorting lines and latest-generation packing lines.

2016-2017

With more than 100 collections available in a wide range of designs and sizes, CERAMICA RONDINE also boasts a wide range of porcelain stoneware skirting tiles. In 2016 extensive investments were planned and implemented in early 2017. These investments increased and optimised the production processes, thus also leading to the production of large sizes, from 80x80 to 120x120, and allowed the company to increase its competitive performance on international markets.

2018-2019

In October 2018 Italcer Group, parent company of the ceramic group of the same name controlled by the italian private equity fund Mandarin Capital Partners II and Graziano Verdi, completed the 100% takeover of Ceramica Rondine. This acquisition follows those of La Fabbrica Spa, Elios Ceramica Spa and Devon&Devon Spa, which were completed in 2017. With Rondine, the Italcer Group, with aggregate turnover of 200 million EUR, among first places in the league table of Italian ceramics manufacturers. The entry of Rondine in the Italcer Group will allow the company to equip itself with new instruments and synergies that allow it to develop an increasingly leading role in domestic and international markets.

2020

2020 brings the new acquisition of Cedir - Ceramiche di Romagna, an historical company located in Ravenna, in order to expand the group hub in the Romagna area.
Moreover, we have also presented the innovative ADVANCE technology, an eco-friendly ceramic in porcelain stoneware, in first and single fire, at over 1230 degrees of cooking and with 40% of recycled raw materials for both residential and non-residential solutions.
Thanks to its antiviral, antibacterial and photocatalytic properties, Advance is able to protect the surrounding environments, making them healthier and reducing significantly the pollution.

2021

On March, 2021 Italcer acquires Equipe Cerámicas, a Spanish global leading ceramic company specialized in small formats headquartered in Figueroles (Castellón).

2022

In October 2022, Italcer has completed its product portfolio, formats ranging from 10x10 cm to 160x320 cm through the acquisition of Ceramica Fondovalle, a world leader in large slabs located in Marano sul Panaro and Ubersetto.

2023

At the end of 2023, Italcer expands by adding Terratinta to the Group, thus completing a wide range of product offerings.

Factories

The Rubiera factory (Reggio Emilia) is equipped with the latest generation systems for producing porcelain stoneware, with a production capacity of 4.5 million square metres of wall and floor coverings.
The complete cycle is highly technological, flexible, and has a low impact on the environment. The site has adopted measures for the reduction of emissions and energy consumption, and environmental monitoring, in accordance with stipulated regulations.

The historical production of small-size ceramics continues at the factory in Vetto (Reggio Emilia), the original production site of Sadon, with a variety of ranges and sizes. These facilities annually produce over 3 million m2 of flooring, coverings and skirting tiles in porcelain stoneware.

The processing cycle starts at Spray Dry, one of the Group’s companies. This autonomy ensures ongoing quality control at any point during processing. Spray Dry is the mot significant production department of atomised powder for porcelain stoneware in the entire ceramic district of Sassuolo.
The site has 4 granulators and 3 sprayers, with an annual production capacity of 400,000 tons of atomised powder, and has 27 employees.

Research and Development

Thanks to the use of the latest advanced technology, and the development of significant in-house design knowledge, the Rondine Group provides quality all over the world.

Production processes

In its own factories, Ceramica Rondine covers all steps of the production process. The plants are used to produce different sizes of floor and wall tiles: 60x120, 24x120, 30x120, 20x120, 20,5x100, 60x60, 30x60, 80x80,45x80, 40x120, 40,6x40,6, 45x90, 22,5x90, 15x100, 15x61, 15x45,
34x34, 17x34, 17x17, 7.5x45 7.5x40,7, 10x60, the brand new 6x25, 13x25, 6.1x37,
20.3x20.3, 20.3x40.6, as well as 2 sizes of skirting tile: 8x33.3, 8x45.

Logistics

With its two manufacturing sites in Rubiera and Vetto, the company uses a radio frequency system (WMS) to control and manage the goods handling in the warehouse.

Recently an innovative process model was applied, offering precise control over each pallet in the warehouse.
Moreover, the operating sequences for preparing and forming multi-reference shipping pallets have been fully automated, leading to increased optimization of these operations.

But that’s not all the latest news: the activities and access to the warehouses are monitored constantly and in real time, and all the articles – floor tiles, special pieces and samples – are entirely managed via radio frequency.

Finally, an integrated loading system with weighbridge and luminous display has been implemented.

Made in Italy: A natural passion

It is the factories situated in the local area which are at the basis of creativity, taste, design, ideas and continual aesthetic development. This takes shape in the creation of designer collections from the Ceramica Rondine brands which stand out for their MADE IN ITALY authenticity.

Creative solutions for the pleasure of choosing
Creative solutions for ceramic floor and wall coverings are expressed with the elegance of the most refined marbles, the age-old charm of stone, the natural warmth of wood, the material appearance of terracotta, the seduction of the sophisticated nuance of colour, and the touch of rough or smooth surfaces.

A wide choice to suit all requirements
Ceramica Rondine’s porcelain stoneware collections offer an extensive range of opportunity for choosing and finding the most suitable material, for all internal and external environments. These collections are enriched with original, exquisite decoration, and come in a wide range of formats, ideal for anyone looking for the most suitable classic and modern design solutions, for living areas or business environments.

Organisation, Management and Control Model

Italcer S.p.A. is constantly committed to improvement. The Model for Organisation, Management and Control was adopted in line with Legislative Decree 231/2001 – a set of protocols which regulate and define company structure and management of sensitive business processes in an aim to reduce criminal offence risk.

The following documents can be downloaded below:

Organisational Model Guidelines
Code of Ethics
Anti-Corruption policy
Extract from the Disciplinary Code

The Italcer Group Whistleblowing platform can be reached at the following link:. https://italcer.integrityline.com