Over a century of excellence
Driven by our passion, we have been looking for innovative ideas to improve our products throughout our entire history. A deep admiration for Italian artisan tradition, combined with a deep knowledge of the textile industry and our own and unique idea of what it means to do business by placing creativity and the human being at the heart of everything we do.
This is what makes our company stand out.
Our greatest strength lies in our people: our clients, who are our most valued partners, and everyone who has been working with us along the way.
Our history
Our company was founded in Italy, but it has grown to span the globe.
It all began in Novara, in the neighbourhood that would come to be known as Sant’Andrea. There, we have been cultivating our passion for quality, crafting distinctive machinery and continuously studying new ways to innovate production – always with a focus on people and their needs.
The company opens its doors in the heart of Novara, under the name Officine Costruzioni Novara. Its mission is to support silk factories by producing specialised machinery for the manufacturing of this material. For 8 years, the main company production is represented by a series of 22 distinct machines for silk spinning.
The company employs around 350 employees and specialises according to a rational and highly innovative approach, quickly becoming a model for the Italian industrial fabric. Spinning, preparation and retorge machineries become the backbone of Officine Costruzioni Novara, and the business expands to include a foundry within its own premises. At the time, Officine Costruzioni Novara becomes Officine Sant’Andrea, paying homage to the Novara neighbourhood that houses the plant.
Delfino Parodi acquires the company, which now boasts almost 500 employees. Driven by a commitment to quality, Officine Sant’Andrea continues its upward trajectory and unveils a new combing line, which is shown to the public at the Brussels International Textile Exhibition in 1955.
In 1958, the company adopts a new business name: Sant’Andrea Novara – Officine meccaniche e fonderie SPA.
After nearly 40 years of steady growth and ongoing investments in creating new “professionals for the textile industry”, the company enters a new era in 1986, under the leadership of the Orlandi family. These renowned textile entrepreneurs decide to invest in the company’s future by promoting a wave of technological renewal and acquiring two key industry brands: Cognetex and Seydel.
Sant’Andrea Novara is acquired by Finlane Spa, a French- and Italian-owned Group that supports the company through a challenging period of sharp market contraction. Today, alongside Cognetex, the company constitutes the Italian “NSC fibre to yarns” centre of excellence.
The group
Sant’Andrea Novara is part of the Schlumberger Group, alongside Cognetex, Seydel and NSC Schlumberger.
