Engico Succeeds With ‘Jumbo’ Ambitions, Innovations & Versatility BY GREG KISHBAUGH & LEN PRAZYCH The entrepreneurial spirit is not something that can be learned; it is ingrained and instinctive. Rinaldo Benzoni, founder and managing director of Engico s.r.l., a manufac- turer of jumbo corrugated converting equipment based in Lissone, Italy, near Milan, viewed every opportunity in his young life as a means to learn more, to improve his under- standing of the world, and to grasp what it would take to be successful in business.
tament to Engico’s commitment to the advancement of technology. Four years after its founding, the company de- signed and produced the first multi-functional folder-gluer, which could be combined with existing slotters. The re- sulting multi-functional flexo-gluers have been installed in more than 50 facilities worldwide. In 2000, the company implemented the first indepen- dent slotting unit, and the following year the first multi-pur- pose bottom flexo casemaker, a 66-inch by 161-inch ma- chine completely designed and manufactured by Engico was installed. In 2010, the company installed the largest printer slot- ter RDC with stacker in the world, a 99-inch by 256-inch
The Engico Team, from left: Daniele Mazzola, Marco Benzoni, Valentina Benzoni, and Rinaldo Benzoni.
After completing school and a one-year stint in the Army, Rinaldo felt he needed a way to improve his profes- sional standing. “It was now or never” to make his mark in the world, he thought. As such, he applied to join a convert- ing company in his native Milan, Italy. He had reservations because of his lack of experience but was comforted by the fact that it would take several months before he heard back from the company. That would give him enough time to learn about his potential new position. Instead, he heard back the next day. The job was his if he wanted it. “I was so shocked at how quickly everything was mov- ing that I turned the offer down,” said Rinaldo. “But my fu- ture boss was very persuasive and described what a great opportunity it would be.” Engico’s Birth…And Growth Rinaldo hit the ground running, impassioned to learn everything he could about the industry. It turned out to be a pivotal moment in his life. He traveled overseas for the first time, worked hard, studied even harder, and when that company folded five years later, Rinaldo was ready to strike out on his own. In 1990, with a silent partner, he founded Engico, a corrugated converting machinery com- pany. A quick timeline of the company’s achievements is tes-
behemoth. Five years later, the company manufactured and installed the first dual size FFG 66-99/188 line, which integrated 66-inch and 99-inch machines into one. In 2024, the company took another major step for-
ward by founding Engico America, based in Merrilville, Indiana, and headed by corrugated industry veteran Richard Goldberg as its president. For a company that specializes in jumbo machines, looking back at the company’s ori- gins, its goals at first were smaller. “The plan originally was not to
Richard Goldberg
manufacture machines,” said Rinaldo. “The idea was to only provide maintenance on different brand of machines, with a few mechanics, electricians and spare parts opera- tors on staff.” Fueled By Ambition It was not long, however, before Rinaldo’s ambitions grew to manufacturing machines under the Engico name. “The first machine introduced by the company was a fold- er gluer, which was we installed on an existing printer slot- ter,” Rinaldo said, “giving the customer a flexo folder gluer
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April 13, 2026
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