MITICA on Tour – A Journey Through Innovative SMEs

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On Monday, June 15, the first stop of “MITICA on Tour – A Journey Through Innovative SMEs” took place. The initiative is promoted within the framework of the Interreg Italy–Switzerland project “MITICA – Innovative Models for Transferring Advanced Skills to Enterprises”, aimed at fostering concrete pathways for growth, innovation, and skills development among SMEs across the cross-border region.

The event brought together a delegation of entrepreneurs from the Canton of Ticino and the Lecco area to visit two outstanding companies: Rebel Dynamics srl and Officine Piki srl. These two small businesses from the Lecco province have made innovation their strategic driver, continuously investing in and experimenting with advanced technologies. During the visits, participants had the opportunity to gain first-hand insight into parallel kinematics simulation systems, digital twins, advanced control systems, humanoid robots used in manufacturing processes, metal 3D printing technologies, and practical experiences in business digitalization.

The event was opened by representatives of the project partners promoting the initiative: Marco Tarabini, Vice-Rector Delegate of the Lecco Campus of Politecnico di Milano and Italian lead partner of the project; Andrea Barni, Deputy Director of Fondazione Agire and Swiss lead partner; and representatives of the two partner associations: Davide Riva, President of Confartigianato Imprese Lecco, and Giorgia Pati, Innovation Manager at AITI. Naturally, the entrepreneurs of the two host companies were the protagonists of the day: Giovanni Todeschini for Rebel Dynamics and Davide Vitali for Officine Piki.

“MITICA on Tour was created with the aim of bringing companies into concrete innovation experiences, showing how even small businesses can adopt advanced technologies and transform them into drivers of growth. Direct exchange with companies such as Rebel Dynamics and Officine Piki is valuable because it allows entrepreneurs to see applied solutions up close, understand possible pathways, and share skills between territories that have much to learn from one another,” said Marco Tarabini, Scientific Coordinator of MITICA for Italy.

More than a simple company visit, the initiative was a true immersion into the world of innovative SMEs, allowing participants to directly observe cutting-edge technologies both under development and already being applied within small businesses. The added value was certainly the opportunity for participants to engage directly with the entrepreneurs who have led these innovation paths, confirming the importance of sharing knowledge and experience at the heart of the cross-border project.

The first stop of MITICA on Tour took place in Cesana Brianza, at Rebel Dynamics. “Our company is structured around two distinct areas: on the one hand, traditional mechanics, and on the other, the development of innovative projects,” explained Giovanni Todeschini, “in very different sectors, from automotive to sport and gaming, through to rehabilitation and biomechanics, while we are also entering the fields of defense and aerospace, drones, and humanoid robotics.” Particular attention was given to motion simulators, which “make it possible to optimize products and improve their efficiency, reducing costs and time to market.”

In the afternoon, the group moved to Valvarrone to visit Officine Piki. “We are a small company located in a mountain area,” explained Davide Vitali, “but we are driven by the curiosity to understand what is happening outside our company, in order to bring the most interesting innovations into our workshops. It was with this spirit that, several years ago, I approached the topic of metal 3D printing, and more recently we decided to equip ourselves with a cognitive humanoid robot whose software is continuously being implemented. These investments have allowed us to enter new markets, optimizing both processes and products.”

“This field experience confirmed to us that innovation is not something reserved only for large companies or major research centers because often, especially in our territory, even small businesses demonstrate an extraordinary ability to innovate every day. They do so by developing new technologies and attracting young talent, as in the case of Rebel Dynamics, and by promoting digital transition and automation projects to support production processes, as we saw at Officine Piki,” highlighted Davide Riva, President of Confartigianato Imprese Lecco. “In today’s craftsmanship, experience and innovation, traditional skills and advanced technologies increasingly coexist and remain fundamental assets. What truly makes the difference, however, is always the human factor, linked to the curiosity and passion that drive our entrepreneurs to look beyond and that animated the entire day, including the exchange among participants during the visits to the two companies.”

The networking moments were also particularly appreciated, encouraging the exchange of experiences and laying the foundations for new synergies between Italian and Swiss companies. One of the main objectives of the MITICA project is precisely to create opportunities for exchange between the productive realities of the two territories, promoting the dissemination of skills and innovative models that can also be replicated in other business contexts.

“The journey will continue after the summer, on October 15, with the second stop of the tour, this time organized in Switzerland,” concluded Andrea Barni, Deputy Director of Fondazione AGIRE. “In the Lecco area, we had the opportunity to explore the innovation capacity of small businesses. In Switzerland, we will visit two companies, one medium-sized and one large, always with the aim of getting to know companies engaged in technological innovation and digital transformation processes.”

In the meantime, MITICA continues with its training activities, fully funded thanks to Interreg funds and open to all interested SMEs in Lombardy. The courses are available on the website www.mitica-interreg.org.