Smart Factory

What Smart Factory does

Smart Factory Srl is an Italian private industrial automation company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Rivalta Scrivia (Alessandria province), with a registered office in Milan. The company designs and sells modular, Industry 4.0-compliant automation systems targeted at mid-to-large European manufacturers in packaging-adjacent sectors, including caps and closures, cosmetics packaging, pharmaceutical packaging, home and personal care packaging, electrical components, and multi-material assembly. Its core product, Flexim, is an open automation platform built on a common machine base that can host up to 12 interchangeable workstations controlled by proprietary software with HMI, automatic workstation recognition, plug-and-play installation, cloud connectivity, and ERP/MoM integration. Complementary products include Flexifeed (vision-guided flexible feeders operating at 60-120 PPM), a catalog of modular workstations (manipulators, pressing/gluing, cutting/knurling, ultrasound welding, printing/marking), and Magnetoformatura, an electromagnetic pulse technology (EMPT) for non-contact cold metal forming, welding, cutting, and crimping with claimed 200% energy efficiency and sub-30-microsecond discharge cycles.

The company's revenue model combines hardware sales of automation systems with professional services: Industry 4.0 consulting (process assessment, roadmap planning, implementation support, and certification), customized Big Data analytics services that translate production telemetry into management dashboards and predictive maintenance signals, and trial rentals of EMPT equipment. Distribution is exclusively direct, with no disclosed reseller or partner network, and commercial relationships are managed through a Commercial Director handling enterprise inquiries. Pricing is quote-based and tied to configuration and number of workstations, with multi-year contracts typical. The company references Italian Industry 4.0 fiscal incentives (hyper-amortization, Nuova Sabatini, regional 15% non-repayable grants) as part of its customer value proposition. The firm is privately held by its founding engineers, with no disclosed institutional investors, M&A activity, or executive hires, and operates with a headcount of 1-10 employees.

Name

Smart Factory

Legal name

Smart Factory Srl

Website

https://smartfactory.it

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Smart Factory is an Italian private industrial automation company that builds modular, Industry 4.0-compliant assembly systems — led by its Flexim open automation platform, Flexifeed vision-guided feeders, and Magnetoformatura electromagnetic metal forming technology — for manufacturers in packaging, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, and electrical components sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Automation Systems

NAICS

Industrial Machinery Manufacturing (3332), Relay and Industrial Control Manufacturing (335314)

SIC

Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550), Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Special Industry Machinery, Nec (3559)

akta.pro primary industry

Factory Automation Cells & Integrated Systems (Assembly, Welding, Painting Lines) (IMAHAHAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Automation Software (SCADA, HMI, MES, Historian) (IMAHAHAJ), Factory Automation & Control Systems (PLC/SCADA/DCS) (IMAIAMAA), Conveying, Feeding & Accumulation Systems (Packaging Lines) (IMAHAOAK)

Keywords

• Industrial automation systems
• Modular assembly machines
• Industry 4.0 consulting
• Flexible feeding systems
• Electromagnetic metal forming

Headquarters

HQ city

Rivalta Scrivia

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Automation Hardware Sales: Sale of Flexim open automation systems, Flexifeed flexible feeders, and modular workstations. Machines are modular and reprogrammable, allowing customers to amortize CAPEX across multiple products over the machine lifecycle.
2. Consulting Services: Industry 4.0 consultancy including quick process assessment, roadmap development, and implementation support. Services include facilitating interconnection of production lines, process harmonization, staff training, and Industry 4.0 certification.
3. Big Data Analysis Services: Customized big data analysis service transforming complex data flows into simple management dashboards and KPIs. Supports predictive maintenance, quality control, and production efficiency optimization.
4. EMPT Technology Equipment Rental: Rental of magnetoformatura equipment for a trial period with necessary training provided before customers decide to purchase the system.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Smart Factory designs, manufactures, and sells modular industrial automation systems led by the Flexim open automation platform — a single machine base hosting up to 12 plug-and-play workstations with proprietary HMI/software and full reprogrammability. The portfolio is completed by the Flexifeed vision-guided flexible feeder, Magnetoformatura (EMPT) non-contact electromagnetic metal forming equipment, modular process workstations (manipulation, quality control, pressing, gluing, screwing, cutting, welding, printing), and accompanying Industry 4.0 consulting and Big Data analysis services.

Product overview

Smart Factory is an Italian Industry 4.0 automation company offering a modular, open automation ecosystem. The core product is Flexim, an open automation platform for assembly and processing with up to 12 interchangeable workstations. Flexim connects with Flexifeed for flexible component feeding and supports specialized process workstations for manipulation, quality control, pressing, gluing, rolling, screwing, cutting, welding, and printing. The company also offers Magnetoformatura electromagnetic metal forming technology for non-contact shaping, welding, cutting, and crimping. Services include Industry 4.0 consulting (process assessment, roadmap planning, implementation support, certification) and Big Data analysis (dashboard development, predictive maintenance, quality control). All products are designed to be Industry 4.0 compliant and cloud-connected.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Flexim: Open automation platform for flexible, modular assembly systems - an innovative assembly machine that is 100% reprogrammable with plug-and-play workstation capability
• Flexifeed
• Magnetoformatura

Products and services

• Flexim Open automation platform for assembly, printing, and other processing stations. A common machine base hosts up to 12 modular workstations, controlled by proprietary software enabling automatic workstation recognition and plug-and-play installation. 100% reprogrammable, cloud-connected, and Industry 4.0 compliant, intended for European manufacturers in packaging, electrical components, and multi-material assembly.
• Flexifeed Flexible feeding system for loading and unloading stations that uses electronics, robotics, and computer vision to manage entire product families without mechanical intervention, enabling production changeovers in seconds at 60–120 PPM. Designed for manufacturers handling diverse components such as caps, electrical parts, and multi-material products.
• Magnetoformatura (EMPT Electromagnetic Metal Forming) Electromagnetic pulse technology (EMPT) for non-contact cold metal forming, welding, cutting, and crimping. Uses impulsive magnetic fields with discharge durations under 30 microseconds, converts approximately 90% of electrical energy into mechanical force, delivers 200% energy-efficiency improvement over traditional methods, and welds dissimilar metals such as Al+Cu, Fe+Al, and Au+Ag with no mechanical tool wear. Available for trial rental prior to purchase.
• Industry 4.0 Consulting Consulting engagement covering quick process assessment, roadmap to smart factory development, interconnection of production lines, process harmonization, staff training, and Industry 4.0 certification. Quantifies economic impact on commercial upside, ROCE, asset utilization, and profitability for European manufacturing customers.
• Big Data Analysis Service Customized big data management and analysis service that transforms complex production data into personalized interactive dashboards and management KPIs. Supports predictive maintenance, single-piece quality control, anomaly detection, energy optimization, and production efficiency initiatives for customers with installed Smart Factory equipment.

Quantifiable outcome

• 200% energy efficiency improvement with EMPT technology vs traditional methods
• +4 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature7 records

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Schunk: Provider of modular gripping, handling, and automation components (workholding, toolchanging) used inside flexible assembly cells. Closely comparable to Smart Factory's emphasis on modular, plug-and-play workstation architecture for assembly automation.
• Krones AG: German specialist manufacturer of packaging and bottling line machinery, including caps/closures processing. Highly comparable to Smart Factory on caps & closures and packaging-adjacent assembly automation, though at much larger scale and with broader process coverage.
• Stäubli Robotics: Manufacturer of industrial and assembly robots, including 4-axis SCARA and 6-axis arms commonly deployed in pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and packaging assembly — precisely the verticals Smart Factory lists as primary.
• Bosch Rexroth: Major German factory automation supplier of assembly technology, linear motion, and tightening/pressing systems that map directly onto Smart Factory's modular workstation portfolio (rolling, screwing, pressing, ultrasound welding).
• Gebo Cermex: Specialist supplier of packaging line integration including capping, conveying, feeding, and end-of-line solutions. Overlaps with Smart Factory on caps & closures assembly, Flexifeed-style flexible feeding, and integrated packaging line automation.
• Comau: Italian-headquartered industrial automation company building integrated assembly systems, robotics, and digital manufacturing solutions for industrial customers. Directly comparable to Smart Factory on geography, modular assembly automation, and Industry 4.0 positioning.

Broad incumbents

• ABB: Large diversified industrial automation provider offering PLCs, robots, machine control, and integrated assembly solutions. Overlaps with Smart Factory on factory automation cells and control/HMI layers.
• FANUC: Global industrial automation and robotics incumbent supplying controllers, robots, and vision systems used in flexible assembly cells. Comparable as the dominant incumbent whose controllers/robots Smart Factory's Flexim platform integrates or competes against.
• Schneider Electric: Global industrial automation and IIoT vendor offering PLCs, motion control, MES/SCADA software, and EcoStruxure analytics — overlapping with Smart Factory's HMI, predictive maintenance, and Big Data offerings at a much larger portfolio scale.

Emerging players

• Piab: Provider of vacuum automation, gripping systems, and end-of-arm tooling used in flexible assembly and packaging feeding. Comparable to Smart Factory on the flexible component feeding and manipulation side via Flexifeed.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Smartfactory.it
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smartfactoryitalia

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Smart Factory