Technologies are within everyone's reach, but it is the ability to specialize that makes the difference. This is why the beating heart of Orchidea Preziosi, an Arezzo-based company that has been working with gold and silver for the goldsmithing sector since 1988 and more recently with the production of components (precious and non-precious) for the world of fashion and luxury, is the in-house machine shop. This has enabled the company to transform standard machinery and implement it, thus being able to raise the quality of products, carry out special processing, or increase productivity. We talked about this with Fabio Scartoni, Finance & Marketing Director of Orchidea Preziosi spa.
What does it mean on a practical level to be able to rely on this kind of expertise?
"Translated into the language of the fashion market, it means adherence to schedule and significant production volumes. Although our company is relatively small, it consists of a team of 54 people-so we are able to cope with even large orders on time. It is a response to a market need: designer labels often require prototypes in a short time; thanks to the high technology we use, the specialized staff and the in-house technical workshop, we are able to create a prototype quickly."
What is the marriage between jewelry and fashion accessory? Where do these two worlds come together?
"Fashion is increasingly looking for the high-end quality proper to jewelry, especially where the production material is precious, so gold and silver, and needs a high level of treatment expertise in order not to make the whole production process excessively expensive. So it is the metal, in this case gold, that brings the world of jewelry closer to the world of fashion accessories."
What are the most in-demand machining techniques?
"The most in demand are CNC machining, stampings, and investment casting, which range from a higher level of precision to a more artisanal level, respectively. Here it is the trade off between technology and craftsmanship that becomes a differentiating feature between one brand and another, and thus between one fashion accessory and another."
