Blog

I started working at La Marzocco in 2002. It was my first job, but my passion for mechanics began much earlier. It has always been part of who I am, since I was a child, and eventually it became my profession.

That is why I never left this type of work. For almost twenty years, I have continued to follow the same phase of production: assembling the frame and the boiler, the very beginning of building an espresso machine. And I still do it with the same passion.

I do it because this work gives me satisfaction, and that is why I have never felt the need to change roles. It’s not that other jobs are less important, but this is the one I enjoy the most.

And I know that because I have experienced different areas of production. I worked in testing, I took an electrician course, but what I love most is this starting point of the machine — where craftsmanship, precision, and manual skills come together.

Beyond production, over the years I have also worked alongside the Research & Development engineers because whenever a new machine is created, the new assembly process needs to be tested. The frame needs to be drilled, filed, and every component has to be perfectly aligned.

I have always loved hands-on work: drilling, threading, straightening, bending, welding. And the person who made me even more passionate about this work was Piero Bambi. In him, I found someone who gave me even more motivation and inspiration.

When I joined La Marzocco, I didn’t speak Italian. It was my first job in Italy. Piero would tell me, “Build this machine.” He would show me the work, and because I already had experience, I would observe and then do it myself.

I had practiced working on cars, and having manual skills and previous experience helped me learn quickly. Even today, after all these years, I still come to work happily. I never wake up thinking that I don’t want to come.

Whenever a new person joins the company — just as I did in 2002 — they are taught by someone with more experience. And every time I teach someone, I realize that while I am teaching, I am also learning.

The younger generations have different ways of working, and this has pushed me to continue developing — both professionally and in the way we communicate with each other. There is always something new to learn.

Looking back, over these 23 years, I can say that around 90,000 machines have passed through my hands.

Compared to when I started, La Marzocco has changed. Today, much of the process is focused on assembly, while the preparation and welding of boilers are still done in the workshop.

But even with these changes, attention to detail remains essential. The boiler must be perfectly aligned with the frame, with the correct height and positioning.

We need to be able to pass this knowledge on to younger generations. They need guidance because today’s young workers are different from our generation. The approach has changed.

The foundation of every La Marzocco machine remains the same: the dual boiler system. The machines have evolved, been renewed, and updated over the years, but the heart of the machine has always remained the same.

Over the years, we have created different tools and fixtures to improve our work. Measuring with a simple ruler is not enough — you risk making mistakes and it takes too much time.

Together with the engineers, we developed the necessary supports to make the work more precise and ensure a consistently high-quality product. Creating a tool that everyone will use is a responsibility. It has to be perfect, otherwise you risk introducing an error into production.

These tools also help operators become more confident and efficient more quickly.

You teach people how to tighten components, how to assemble them, and these tools help them work faster. For every machine model, you need to find the best way to work — and today speed is also important at La Marzocco. But quality standards must always remain high.

Over all these years, we have created different teams. This phase is the beginning of the machine, but it is also a starting point for operators.

Many people are curious to grow and move into different areas. I have taught many people this work, and many have gone on to quality control, testing, or other roles.

The people who stay here are the ones who have a true passion for this work. Otherwise, it can become repetitive and boring. You have to find something more within it.

Today, I support three production phases: Phase 5, Phase 10, and Phase 20.

I teach Phase 5, which involves boiler assembly and testing; Phase 10, which is frame and boiler assembly; and Phase 20, which focuses on the hydraulic circuit.

I always try to recognize the right person for each area. Some people naturally enjoy working with the hydraulic components — you can see it from the first day. If someone is working and constantly looks toward another department because they are curious about what is happening there, that tells you something.

Maybe they prefer working with pipes, heating elements, or another part of the process. You have to give people the opportunity to try and discover where they fit best.

The most difficult part is not the work itself. It is finding people who communicate and work well together.

At La Marzocco, I have had the opportunity to continue developing my skills. I have learned, I have found a great environment, and I have met people who gave me the opportunity to improve, grow, and contribute to different products.

When I arrived at La Marzocco, we produced five machines a day. I would finish my part of those five machines by midday, so I would move to the next phase, help with welding, and learn different parts of the process.

The most complex area today is electronics and electrical systems. Now, that requires a strong educational foundation because it is much more complex.

In other areas, you can learn by watching and doing, and it also depends on the person.

This phase, for example, may look simple from the outside, but anyone who has tried it understands that it is not. You need a trained eye to assemble the components correctly and place the machine into production.

When someone new arrives and I have to teach them, the first question I always ask is:

“Why do you want to do this job?”

If they answer, “Because I like it,” or “Because I want to learn,” that is already a good sign.

If someone says they are only doing it because they have nothing else to do, you understand that they are not truly interested.

After many years working with people, I can often recognize immediately if someone has the right manual skills, if they understand the work, and if they enjoy it.

You can see it in their hands, in how they respond, in how they observe. Whether they look closely at the work, whether they notice details, whether they have an eye for precision.

Because intelligence alone is not enough. You need attention, care, and respect for what you are doing.

There are people here who have that extra potential, and teaching them gives you great satisfaction.

When you see them become part of the team and grow, with the support of HR, it is rewarding not only for them but also personally because it recognizes your experience and the trust people have in you.

Seeing new employees learn and develop makes me proud. I am proud of everyone I have taught — whether they stayed in this area or moved to different phases.

I feel that I have taught them something that helped them improve not only at work but also in life.

Because you are not only teaching a job. You are also teaching people how to work with others.

Many people coming directly from school do not yet know how a workplace functions. There is a big difference between school and work.

It is not only about assembling a machine. It is about keeping your workspace organized, putting tools back in their place, respecting others, and learning how to be part of a team.

Working together requires respect. You learn how to collaborate, how to communicate, and how to support each other.

You explain that mistakes happen, that everyone makes them, and that someone new simply needs time to learn. With time, they improve and become faster.

New employees are not immediately asked to build machines independently. First, they need to learn.

We have an authorization system through SAP, and when we believe someone is ready, they become qualified to independently work on machines. We continue checking their work to make sure everything is done correctly.

That is how a new generation is built.

I hope they continue carrying forward the passion, because mechanics never truly has limits. There are always innovations, always something new to discover.

Sometimes a report arrives about an error made in production. We work a lot on understanding these situations because distractions can happen, and we need to understand what happened in each case.

Every production phase has records that allow us to trace the history and identify where an issue occurred.

Of course, sometimes a problem can come from an individual mistake, and that is always difficult to accept.

But the problem can also be ours — maybe we did not explain something clearly enough, or we did not provide enough training.

That is why we investigate: to keep improving.

Working with production times, quantities, and quality standards can create pressure, and pressure can sometimes lead to mistakes.

Sometimes I intentionally make a mistake and ask the team to find it.

That is how we learn — through mistakes.