Nilma

What Nilma does

Nilma S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of professional food processing appliances and industrial kitchen plants, founded in 1956 in Parma by Pietro Nobili and headquartered at Via E. Zacconi 24/A, 43122 Parma. The company has been family-owned for three generations and operates a sales network spanning more than 60 countries. Its product portfolio is organised across four lines: PREPARATION equipment (vegetable washers, peelers, slicers, blenders, homogenizers, breading machines, can openers, and spin dryers), COOKING equipment (universal cookers with mixing systems such as MIX-MATIC, braising pans like SALSAMAT, pressure braising pans like MULTIBRAT, and pasta cookers like DOUGH.O.MAT), Cook & Chill equipment (water-bath chillers like SPIRAL, contact chillers, and air blast chillers), and Software, anchored by the CCMP management and HACCP control platform. Notable technical components include the MULTIBRAT pressure cooking system delivering approximately 70% shorter cook times, the NRC continuous slicer producing up to 400 kg/hour of vegetable cuts at adjustable 0.5-15 mm thickness, the SPIRAL immersion chiller reducing product temperature from 90 to 3 degrees Celsius approximately 30% faster than traditional air blast chillers, and the SALSAMAT braising pan with direct heating to 230 degrees Celsius and dedicated stainless steel scraping paddles.

The CCMP software platform is positioned as the world's only online management system covering all of Nilma's cooking and chilling appliances, supporting smartphone-based remote operation, recipe management, and HACCP parameter monitoring - creating a software-hardware bundle across the appliance installed base. The product line spans more than forty distinct equipment SKUs, with examples including the RG vegetable cutting machine offering 50 cutting configurations across five models, the IDROMATIC continuous industrial-scale spin dryer, and the TCN 202 adjustable-speed fruit dicer.

Nilma's revenue model combines hardware sales of food processing equipment, professional services for turnkey kitchen projects (design, installation, startup), and managed services for spare parts and after-sales support. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales executed through the company's own direct sales network, complemented by trade show participation across HOST Milano, IPACK-IMA, CIBUSTEC, INTERNORGA, SIRHA Lyon, NAFEM, and FHA Horeca Singapore, plus a multilingual digital presence in Italian, English, Spanish, French, and German with quote-based pricing upon request. Primary customers include industrial food producers (vegetable, sauce, pasta, jam, fish processing), institutional canteens and central kitchens (schools, corporate cafeterias), hospital kitchens requiring personalised tray meals, airport kitchens for high-volume airline catering, and cruise ship galleys with compact maritime-grade equipment.

Name

Nilma

Legal name

NILMA S.p.A.

Website

https://nilma.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1956

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nilma designs and manufactures commercial food processing appliances and industrial kitchen plants serving food industries, canteens, hospitals, airports, and cruise ships. This family-owned Parma, Italy company, founded in 1956, operates through a direct sales network in more than 60 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Parma

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Food Processing Equipment Sales: Sale of professional food processing appliances including preparation equipment, cooking systems, and Cook & Chill solutions to commercial and industrial customers. Products include universal cookers, vegetable washers, slicers, braising pans, pasta cookers, and blast chillers.
2. Turnkey Kitchen Projects: Complete kitchen design, installation, and project implementation services for food industries, canteens, hospitals, airports, and cruise ships.
3. After-Sales Service: Spare parts, maintenance, and technical support services for installed equipment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Nilma designs, manufactures, and sells professional appliances and complete plants for the catering and food industries, covering preparation (washing, peeling, cutting, chopping, blending, homogenising), cooking (braising, steaming, boiling, frying), and Cook & Chill processes, plus the proprietary CCMP management and HACCP control software. The company also delivers turnkey kitchen projects — design, installation, startup, and after-sales service — for food industries, canteens, hospitals, airports, cruise ships, and delicatessens in more than 60 countries.

Product overview

Nilma is an Italian company (founded 1956) specializing in professional appliances and plants for the food industry and catering sector. The product portfolio consists of four main lines: PREPARATION equipment (vegetable washers, peelers, cutters, slicers, homogenizers, breaders, can openers, spin dryers, and blenders), COOKING equipment (universal cookers with mixing systems, braising pans, pasta cookers, tilting pressure braising pans), Cook & Chill equipment (water-bath chillers, contact chillers, air blast chillers), and Software (CCMP management and HACCP control system). These integrated product lines work together to provide end-to-end food processing solutions from preparation through cooking to blast chilling, with CCMP software enabling unified control of all connected appliances. The company serves institutional kitchens, centralised kitchens, canteens, hospitals, food industries, airports, cruise ships, and delicatessens in over 60 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MIX-MATIC 500 S Universal cooker with integrated mixing system combining boiling and mixing capabilities for institutional kitchens, centralised kitchens, canteens, and industrial food producers.
• TURBOIDREX Automatic vegetable washer with spin dryer for high-capacity vegetable processing.
• SPIRAL Water-bath immersion chiller on wheels for liquid products, inserted directly into cooking pans to rapidly reduce temperature from 90 to 3°C using a cold coil moving inside hot product.
• CCMP (C.C.M.P.) Management and HACCP Control Software Online management and HACCP control software enabling remote operation of all Nilma cooking and chilling appliances, including appliance control, recipe management, and HACCP parameter monitoring from smartphone.
• SALSAMAT Automatic braising pan with mixing system using direct heating up to 230°C and special stainless steel scraping paddles for sauces, stews, and jams in institutions, centralised kitchens, canteens, and industrial food producers.
• MULTIBRAT Multifunctional tilting pressure braising pan with 250-litre cooking vat that uses 0.5 bar pressure and an 8-bar steam system to cut cooking times by more than 70%, conserving taste and flavour, with touchscreen control and CCMP software integration.
• DOUGH.O.MAT Automatic pasta cooker that cooks pasta, rice, spaghetti, tortellini, and gnocchi with improved working conditions and labour and energy savings.
• NRC Continuous cycle slicer for lengthwise cutting of vegetables such as aubergines, courgettes, carrots, and potatoes, with adjustable thickness from 0.5 to 15 mm and outputs up to 400 kg/h.
• KLINER Combined hand washing sink and electric knife sterilizer with hot/cold water tap, knee operation, and water temperature set above 90°C.
• SB-4 Professional blender with SPF variable speed system from 700 to 15,000 rpm and a 4-litre graduated pitcher for mixing, chopping, emulsifying, and homogenising sauces, vegetables, fruits, cocktails, soups, and juices.
• ATIR Universal Vegetable Washer Family Family of universal vegetable washers (ATIR, ATIR AIR PLUS, ATIR NSF/UL, ATIRMATIC) with tilting design, adjustable washing intensity, optional air-bubble enhancement, and NSF/UL certification variants for delicate to robust vegetables.
• PIONEER Potato and Carrot Peeler Family Quick potato and carrot peeler with 1–2 minute peeling cycles, available as standalone PIONEER unit and as PIONEER SYSTEM automatic potato peeling line for complete potato processing automation.
• BOXER Quick garlic peeler requiring 2 hours of soaking prior to processing for optimal results.
• RG Vegetable Cutting Machine Family Vegetable cutting machine range offered in five models (RG100, RG200, RG250, RG350, RG300i, RG400i) with 50 different cutting options including slices, cubes, sticks, and julienne strips.
• APRIBOX Automatic can opener processing 100–200 cans per hour with adjustable cutting height for round cans up to 5 kg weight and 380 mm height.
• BREAD 2000 HT Continuous breading machine processing meat rolls with maximum diameter of 25 mm.
• SPEEDY-CUTTER Family Universal food processors (SPEEDY-CUTTER and SPEEDY CUTTER DSF) for mincing, grating, chopping, and mayonnaise preparation up to 23 kg; DSF variant adds vacuum and heating capability for cooked preparations.
• TVN 202 Continuous cutter with conveyor belt for automated food processing.
• TCB 203 Continuous dicing and strip-cutting machine for cubing and julienne processing.
• STRIPPER Leaf vegetable cutter designed for processing leafy greens.
• MIXER Family Homogenizer-emulsifier range (MIXER and MIXER HD) for producing homogeneous mixtures, with HD variant for heavier-duty and larger-scale production.
• SOUPPER Hot soup and beverage transfer pump designed for pumping liquid products whose surfaces tend to return to initial shape.
• MS/4 INOX Automatic hamburger and meatball moulding machines.
• VCB 61/62 Vertical cutter machines for food processing.
• CC34 Combined cutting and slicing machine.
• IDROVER Spin Dryer Family Family of vegetable spin dryers (IDROVER, IDROVER 50 NSF/UL, IDROMATIC) using centrifugal force to remove excess water from cooked vegetables, with NSF/UL certified and continuous industrial-scale variants.
• RW 70 Automatic rice washing machine.
• MAXIM Quick onion peeler.
• TCN 202 Cutting machine for dicing fruit without damage, with adjustable cutting speed.

Quantifiable outcome

• MULTIBRAT cooking time reduced by more than 70%
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Middleby Corporation: Large US-listed group owning dozens of commercial kitchen and food processing brands. Competes with Nilma across cooking, chilling, and food preparation via portfolio companies such as TurboChef, Blodgett, and Viking.
• Ali Group: Italian-headquartered global group owning many commercial kitchen and food service equipment brands (e.g., Hoshizaki-related). Competes broadly with Nilma across preparation, cooking, and refrigeration.
• GEA Group: German engineering group with significant food processing and refrigeration technology. Comparable to Nilma's industrial food processing appliances and Cook & Chill systems for larger producers.
• JBT Corporation: US-listed provider of food processing and air transport equipment, including cooking, chilling, and freezing technologies. Comparable to Nilma's Cook & Chill and industrial cooking product lines.
• Electrolux Professional: Swedish-listed global manufacturer of professional kitchen, laundry, and food service equipment. Direct overlap with Nilma in cooking, preparation, and chilling categories for institutional and hospitality customers.

Regional players

• Bühler Group: Swiss industrial group manufacturing food processing equipment for grain, pasta, chocolate, and prepared foods. Comparable in serving industrial food producers with engineered processing plants, like Nilma's industrial customers.

Emerging players

• Marel: Icelandic-listed supplier of advanced food processing equipment for meat, fish, and prepared foods. Overlaps with Nilma in industrial food processing and chilling, though focused more on protein processing lines.

Direct peers

• Hobart: Long-established manufacturer of commercial food preparation, cooking, and warewashing equipment. Overlaps directly with Nilma's preparation and cooking product lines for professional kitchens.
• Hoshizaki: Japanese-headquartered manufacturer of commercial kitchen refrigeration and ice equipment, with growing cooking and food preparation lines. Direct overlap with Nilma's chilling systems and growing presence in European institutional kitchens.
• Rational AG: German manufacturer of combi-ovens and cooking systems for professional kitchens. Highly comparable to Nilma's cooking line and Cook & Chill offerings, serving institutional catering and food service customers globally.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/NilmaSpA
• Facebookfacebook.com/nilmafoodmachinery
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nilma-s-p-a-

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 Nilma