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Nestled in the Valtellina among the Alps,the Moretta Prefabbricati production facilitylooks quite picturesque. On this site, wherethe father of the current owner founded thecompany in 1954, the products originallyconsisted mainly of concrete masonryblocks and small concrete pipes. The com-pany is now in the hands of the secondgeneration of the family with Gianmario

Moretta running it successfully ever since heentered his father’s business in 1978.Remarkably, he is not only running the com-pany but also handles all the sales of pre-cast concrete. Moretta Prefabbricati purchased the first tilting tables in 1989 when the companyused them to expand its product portfolio toinclude floor elements. Production capacity

at that time was approximately 200 m²/day. At bauma 2001, Gianmario Morettawas excited by the possibilities offered bycirculation technology and after visitingSAIE in Bologna in 2002, he finally boughta used circulation plant advertised in C&PIwhich was made up of components fromdifferent manufacturers. The alterations tothe machine which were necessary to integrate it into the existing production faci lity resulted in the formation of veryclose contacts with Progress Group ofBrixen in South Tyrol. The discussions with Progress and its sistercompany Ebawe which took place whilethe used circulation plant was being instal-led eventually led to the addition of a newturning machine for the production of double walls, along with a shuttering maga-zine comprising a cleaning and oiling sta -tion. Thus, Moretta Prefabbricati startedproduction with its own circulation plant forthe first time in 2004, the control system forthe entire production facility having beensupplied and installed by Progress. Thecapacity of the new circulation plant was1000 m²/day and only required 9 people inproduction to run it. As a result of plant auto-mation, this capacity represented a quantumleap compared to the previous productionmethod using stationary tilting tables. In2007, Moretta Gianmario again visited

Continuous investment in new technologies establishes the double-wall system in Northern Italy

When Moretta Prefabbricati introduced the system of construction using double walls in 2004, it was the first company in Italy to do so.Initially, it was difficult to convince the market that this system had benefits over traditional construction methods which used masonryblocks.The continuous and determined marketing activity of this company together with the ongoing modernisation of plant technology hasestablished Moretta Prefabbricati in Northern Italy as a precaster with a large number of regular customers and secure markets.

Layout of the circulation plant at Moretta Prefabbricati

The lattice girder cutting machine and the straightening machine for processing the steel coils have been part Moretta Prefabbricati’s circulation machine right from the beginning

Insertion of polystyrene

Compacting / Turning of double walls

Brace elements

Pouring of concrete

Placing fixtures

Reinforcement placing robot

Lattice girder shear

Lattice girder storage unit

Shuttering robot

rack 1

rack 2

Shutter storage unit

Pay-offs

PRECAST CONCRETE ELEMENTS

Moretta Prefabbricati S.n.c., 23030 Lovero (SO), Italy

PRECAST CONCRETE ELEMENTS

SAUDI BUILD

2010

bauma in Munich where he gained theimpetus for the next step in upgrading hisproduction facility. Many of the robots inthe exhibition halls for the concrete and pre-cast industry at bauma 2007 involved newmethods of production which were fasterand produced higher quality products.Moretta Prefabbricati therefore finally inves-ted in two new robots for shuttering and

reinforcement. These were put into opera -tion in 2010. This expansion did not in -crease production capacity, however, only5 people are now needed to operate theentire facility and the product quality is better than before. Today, most of MorettaPrefabbricati’s customers are contractorsand construction companies located withina delivery radius is about 300 km. One of

the secrets of the company’s success lies inthe size of projects the company has chosento supply with precast concrete – Gian -mario Moretta prefers, if possible, to supplya variety of small projects between 500and 600 m². This means that the businessrisk is well spread, especially during diffi-cult periods, thus making for a stable mar-ket position.

During the first expansion in 2004, a shuttering store and a turning machine were added for double-wall production

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The concrete spreader was acquired in 2005.

The cured upper skin of the double walls is fixed in the turning machine by means of steel plates and then lifted before it is rotated and lowered into the freshly produced lower skin to create the double wall.

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New robot technology saves on staffand improves product quality

Today, about 60% of Moretta Prefab -bricati’s output is in the form of floor ele-ments and about 40% is double-wall ele-ments - with other products rarely pro -duced. In general, between 30 and 50 m³concrete is produced using a 1 m³ planeta-ry mixer which, despite its age, is still pro -viding excellent service. The CEM I 52.5Rcement is supplied by Holcim and stored intwo silos while the 3 grades of washedaggregate (0-4, 4-8 and 8-16) are stored inan easily accessible external storage nextto the mixing plant. These raw materials arebrought to the mixer via a belt weighersystem. Additives are not generally used,although they can be for certain productsdepending on the project. The layout ofMoretta Prefabbricati’s production facilityshows its structures as they have developedover time, and the latest enhancements.While the shuttering and magnets were pre-viously positioned by hand, these are nowplaced by the Formmaster robot fromProgress. The robot automatically removesthe shuttering (which has already beencleaned and oiled) from its store and posi-tions it on the circulation pallets alsocleaned and oiled before in the cleaningstation. Then the pallet, along with its shut-tering, is moved across and brought to thereinforcement station. This is where thesecond new robot (also from Progress)comes into use, laying the lattice girders onthe pallets together with the reinforcementbars and spacers automatically. At the next two stations, fittings are posi -tioned manually on the pallets. MorettaPrefabbricati keeps 11 different types of lat-tice girder in its lattice girder store to meetthe various market requirements in terms offloor span and wall thickness. At the con-

After the pallets are cleaned, the new Formmaster robot places the magnets and the lateralshutters on the pallets.

With the floor elements, the polystyrene foam bodies are placed directly on the fresh concrete after production. All the elements are cured overa period of about 12 hours in the drying chamber boasting 2 x 18 storage places.

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creting station, the concrete spreader (supplied by Ebawe in 2005)spreads fresh concrete on the pallets via a screw conveyor dischar-ge unit. Moretta Prefabbricati integrates blocks into most floor ele-ments for thermal and acoustic insulation and the reduc -tion ofweight. These polystyrene foam bodies are placed immediatelyafter the concrete is poured and the elements are smoothed. Since,with most projects, the floors are only stressed along one axis, thepolystyrene foam bodies are arranged continuously. In the fewcases where the floors must be stressed along two axes, gaps areleft between the blocks into which the corresponding upper reinfor-cement layer can be inserted. Compaction is achieved by horizon-tal shaking alone. Where compaction was pre viously achieved byshock vibration using stationary tilting tables, the current procedureis much quieter and produces better product qualities. The floor ele-ments with the blocks and the upper skins of the double-wall ele-ments are then moved directly into the curing chamber where theyare usually left for 12 hours before being stripped and either placedin the storage area (floor elements) or returned to the productioncycle (upper skins of the double-wall elements).

The upper skins of the double-wall elements are secured in positionby steel hold-down clamps before being rotated 180 degrees in theturning station and com -bined with the freshly concreted lower skinsof their respective double-wall elements. Once the upper skins havebeen set down on the lower skins, the hold-down clamps and the turn -ing device are removed and the elements are placed in the curingchamber for a further 12 hours before they are finally taken to thestore by forklift truck. The circulation plant is managed by a Progress

controller. The data for the controller originate from the NemetschekAllplan CAD system which Valentina Moretta uses to prepare all theelement plans.

The next expansion is already planned

Gianmario Moretta always appears enthusiastic about the tradeshows in which he takes part, both as a visitor and an ex hibitor.

The second new robot at Moretta Prefabbricati takes the reinforcement bars from their store and accurately positions them in the shuttering

Lattice girders, fittings and special lifting hooks are positioned at the manual stations before the elements are concreted.

Valentina Moretta (the owner’s daughter) uses the NemetschekAllplan to prepare all element drawings, which also serve to controlthe circulation plant

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Moretta Prefabbricati recently introduced the double-wall system ata trade show in Libya and attracted a potential customer even there.The next enhancements are already planned – the company is topurchase a recycling plant since requirements in this respect arebecoming increasingly strict in Italy. In the long term, an automatic

Moretta Prefabbricati now almost exclusively produces floor anddouble-wall elements. Where the floors have to be stressed alongtwo axes, corresponding gaps must be left between the blocks sothat the upper layer of transverse reinforcement can be inserted onsite

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Via G. Di Vittorio, 42 - Fornovo di Taro (Parma) - ItalyTel: +39 0525 400511 Fax: +39 0525 400512

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lattice girder-processing machine will alsobe added.

The strategy of the dynamic company pro-prietor is continuous investment – and thisstrategy works. He is proud to show hisautomated facility to many customers andorder books suggest that the high qualityproducts from Moretta Prefabbricati willcontinue be in demand for the foreseeablefuture.

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The covered external storage area for the aggregates is located nextto the mixing plant

The Moretta Prefabbricati production facility lies in a scenic locationin the Valtellina.

Gianmario Moretta often takes the opportunity to show the plant to his customers

Moretta Prefabbricati S.n.c.Via Nazionale, 4 23030 Lovero (SO), ItalieT +39 0342 770052 · F +39 0342 770097info@morettaprefabbricati.it · www.morettaprefabbricati.it

Progress Maschinen & Automation AGJulius-Durst-Straße 100 · 39042 Brixen, ItalieTel. +39 0472 979100 · Fax +39 0472 979200info@progress-m.com · www.progress-m.com

EBAWE Anlagentechnik GmbHDübener Landstraße 58 · 04838 Eilenburg, GermanyT +49 3423 6650 · F +49 3423 665200info@ebawe.de · www.ebawe.de

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