Verona confirms itself as the capital of marble and sustainable stone. Alongside the international vocation of the local companies, innovative knowledge provided by the University of Verona will now be available. For this reason, on the morning of February 21st, in the Barbieri Hall of Palazzo Giuliari, the collaboration agreement between the University of Verona and the Isim, International Marble Institute, the operational arm of Confindustria Marmomacchine, was signed.
Signing the collaboration document for research and development projects related to the circular economy in the stone sector were the pro-rector of the university Diego Begalli and the president of Isim Paolo Marone.
Representatives of institutions and the main institutes and companies in the local and national stone sector were present. Among the participants were the honorary president of Confindustria Marmomacchine Flavio Maraballi, the national president of Confindustria Marmomacchine Federico Fraccaroli, the president of Asmave Assocmarmisti veronesi Pierluigi Testi, Filippo Semenzin from the Verona marble district, the president of the masons of Valpantena Renato dal Corso, the director of Confindustria Verona Marco Cappelletti, the commercial director of Veronafiere Raul Barbieri, the Marmomac Veronafiere manager Francesca Zivelonghi, the mayor of Grezzana Arturo Alberti, and the consultant Enrico Ghinato.
The starting point of the new collaboration will be the project called Verona Zsw, Zero Stone Waste, which benefits from the experience gained within the framework of the European Commission’s “Life” project. The idea is to establish in the city of Verona the world’s first center for applied research for the valorization of waste and by-products from marble and granite processing, thanks to collaboration with the stone sector at the national and international levels. The project, initiated in 2020 by Isim and Confindustria Marmomacchine, deals with the development of innovative techniques for the End of Waste of marble, granite, and basalt processing waste and for the reduction of energy consumption and CO2 emissions. Zsw aims to demonstrate the feasibility, both technical and economic, of some innovative recycling processes for marble, granite, and basalt processing waste, with the valorization of waste transformed into products usable in construction, agriculture, and other fields. The proposed technology is tailored for small and medium-sized enterprises.
This is the project from which new studies and research will stem, to be carried out in collaboration with the university to enhance this and other innovative techniques.
