The company in collective name Walter Homberger & Co., now known as Homberger Spa, was founded in Genoa by two friends, Walter Homberger and Ubaldo Rollo, in November 1905.
The company was heavily focused on the mechanical and heavy industry of the time, and "high-tech" products were supplied to the first customers whose names are found in the 1906 books: Società Anonima Fiat, Ansaldo-Armstrong & C., Lancia Fabbrica Automobili, L.Pomini Castellanza, Soc.Automobili "Rapid", Fabbr. Automobili "Itala" etc.
From 1905 to 1945
From 1945 to 1985
From 1985 to today
The two partners operate firsthand in the industrial triangle of Genoa - Milan - Turin and beyond, quickly gaining the trust of suppliers mainly from Northern Europe (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) with whom they establish a relationship that in some cases still lasts today.
They specialize in tooling and offer their customers the most modern machine tools that slowly become decisive investments in order to compete in Italy and abroad.
The company grows in parallel with the automotive, naval, and military industries of the early 20th century. It opens a branch in Milan, Turin, and Rome, covering the entire Italian territory with a dense and competent network of agents.
Meanwhile, the second generation, represented operationally by Walter Rollo, acquires new representations and structures an adequate customer service, particularly innovative for the times.
At the end of World War II, some European representatives were unable to produce, and Homberger turned to new American suppliers, with whom they collaborated for several years until some of the old German suppliers remaining in West Germany managed to complete the reconstruction and adapt to the new technologies that the Americans had brought to Europe.
The 1960s and 1970s were "pioneering" years: computer-controlled machine tools were introduced to the market, and customers demanded new skills and new technological and process support. The formation of the sales network and customer service became the key factor in satisfying customers.
In 1979, the third generation (which still leads the company today) facilitated constant innovation: new management logics supported by information systems, new customer services, and new commercial agreements with important partners.
Homberger specializes in sheet metal processing machines and forms a partnership with the major German group Trumpf in automation with another German group Stoeber, and acquires some commercial entities in the sector that allow expanding the range of products to offer and the customer base.
In the early 2000s, a new logistics center was opened, which is already undergoing expansion and innovation in logistics processes.
In 2015, the fourth generation - still descended from the two founding families - joined the company and promoted new and important commercial agreements, including with the Swiss company Kraftwerk (tooling) and the Korean Doosan Robotics (collaborative robotics). These two partnerships represent the two "extremes" of the service that Homberger Spa offers its customers today: from simple maintenance equipment for plants that must be of excellent quality, reliable, and always available in stock, to Industry 4.0 solutions that require high technical expertise and great customer support both in the study and implementation of new production processes. In this direction, in 2019, a center for customer training mainly focused on robotics was opened near the Buccinasco headquarters.
