Cimbali
 |
|
| Privately held company | |
| Industry | Specialty coffee brewing equipment |
| Founded | 1912 in Milan, Italy |
| Founder | Giuseppe Cimbali |
| Headquarters |
 Binasco (MI), Italy |
| Products |
Espresso machines Coffee grinders Accessories |
|
Number of employees
|
~600 people (2007) |
| Website | Cimbali.com |
Cimbali (with brand name LaCimbali) is an Italian manufacturer of professional espresso and cappuccino equipment.
Gruppo Cimbali SpA is based in Binasco, near Milan. It has four production facilities, all located in Italy, which cover a total area of 75,000 m² (800,000 ft²), of which 40,000 m² (430,000 ft²) indoors. With branch offices in France, Spain, the UK and in the United States, the company employs more than 600 people. Today, Cimbali exports roughly 70% of its production through a network of 700 direct sales and service centers to over a hundred countries around the world.
Cimbali was established in 1912 by Giuseppe Cimbali in Milan, at Via Caminadella 6. Covering 30 m² to accommodate the owner and his two employees, the first shop ("Cimbali Giuseppe — Copper Plumbing & General Repairs") specialized in the manufacture of copper goods.
In the 1930s, coffee machines produced steam and hot water by burning wood or coal beneath a vertical boiler. They were cylindrical in shape and were therefore called column machines. Cimbali’s first column machine was called the “Rapida”.
The positive post-war atmosphere in Italy brought an increase in the consumption of coffee, thus further driving the development of the company's operations. As a result, the market demanded machines with enhanced productivity. In 1945, Cimbali’s “Albadoro” model featured two independent vertical boilers. Modular in design, the “Albadoro“ was made available in 3 to 6 brew groups. The “Albadoro” was the first machine to feature an integrated cup warmer.
In the late 1940s and early 1950s, boilers powered by electric heating elements began to replace wood and coal heated boilers. Moreover, it was during this period that lever machines radically changed the way of extracting coffee. This new technique forced water through coffee at a pressure of 9 atmospheres, thus obtaining a high-efficiency extraction of the aroma, and ultimately the crema caffè.
In 1955, the company introduced the “Granluce”, the first coffee machine to feature a hydraulic group. Patented by Cimbali in 1956, the hydraulic group signaled a transformation within the professional espresso machine industry. The new hydraulic group and its dosed delivery represented the first important step towards automation. 1959 saw the arrival of a model with the application of a heat exchanger, which was later to become an essential constructional element, ensuring the thermal balance of the machine.
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Wikipedia