A visit to the factory
Once the conference, with the discussion with the interested audience, was over, we moved to the Sicce’s production department. In recent years, the assembly and packaging chain has been further optimized to allow more effective use of space, and the reduction of working time per unit produced.
In this area, too, the organization seems to be on the nose. It is sufficient to see how the main warehouse is arranged, with ready-to-ship materials stored in areas furthest from the workstations and, as these get closer and closer, all the items that are instead needed for assembly are made readily available and close to the operator who employs them.
We were able to see some of the machinery, such as the one that seales the pump body with insulating resin, which is necessary to ensure impermeability and submersibility.
It was also interesting to see how some construction steps are still carried out by hand, with quality control present at every stage of production, benefiting product reliability.
Lunch break
After the tour of the production department, we moved to a local restaurant for lunch. Again, nothing to say about the organization. A shuttle brought those who, coming from distant locations, did not have their own transportation.
The lunch itself was excellent, full of traditional local dishes. We certainly could not miss the typical pasta dish, which answer to the name of bigoli in Cittadella, and which, in this handmade version, was offered to us with a wonderful duck sauce.
The new products presentation
Returning to the headquarters in the early afternoon saw us seated again in the conference room desks, ready to attend the presentation of the new products. Sicce’s proposal for 2022 was mainly focused on the new series of heaters, which were presented by Federico Carraro, one of the company’s cornerstones in system design and implementation.
Jolly Preset heaters
This type of heater, made mostly for small tanks and turtle tanks, complements those of the pre-existing Jolly series. In these, too, the body is made of unbreakable plastic, which benefits safety. The main difference with the Jolly series, lies in the fact that these are factory preset to a temperature of 25°C with + or – 1°C tolerance. In addition, the power light is red and not blue as in previous models. The internal temperature can reach a maximum of 80° C, and there is dry-running protection.
Jolly Preset can be found in 6, 12 and 25 Watt versions.
Scuba Preset heaters
Available in the entire range from 25 to 300 Watt power, these heaters are aimed at those who don’t need to change the operating temperature, and keep it at a constant value. Usable on tanks up to about 350 liters, they are also preset at 25°C with a tolerance of +- 1°C.
Scuba Contactless heaters
The Scuba heater series, already in the Sicce catalog, has been redesigned and improved, adding the 400 Watt model to an already very complete lineup. Wattages available to date start at 25 Watts and gradually increase to cover the needs of all small to medium-sized tanks, up to about 400-450 liters with the 400 Watt of the latest addition.
All Scubas consist of a glass body, which is fairly small in diameter compared to standard heaters. The high-performance glass ensures optimal heat dissipation, while the plastic handle allows you to grip it without the risk of getting burned.
At the top, instead of the temperature adjustment knob, which was a feature of the old series, the indicator light has been brought in, giving us a visual indication of the power status. Adjusting the operating temperature, which can be selected between 15° and 38° C, is done through the smartphone.
We will have to download the CONTRALL application, the same one that is used to control the whole range of Sicce products, from pumps to filters, to the heaters. This type of control takes advantage of NFC transmission technology, found in all the latest generation of cellphones.
Operation is done with the heater off, by bringing the phone close to the heater head and adjusting the temperature on the phone’s display. The preset will be stored and the instrument will self-adjust to the desired temperature once it is turned back on and immersed in water.
The Scuba Contactless heater has two protections from dry-running, one electronic and the other thermal-electromechanical. This will ensure that the accessory is turned off once it is taken out of the water, to prevent overheating and failure.
The Select Dealer program
In our introduction we mentioned that Sicce aims to support its direct customers (we are talking about retailers) by helping them in growing their business.
This is the context for the Select Dealer loyalty program, which gives dealers access to special discounts and benefits based on three levels (BRONZE, SILVER and GOLD) that can be scaled through a mixed purchase and annual billing system.
Benefits range from Store Localization on the Sicce page, help through dedicated Marketing Tools, distribution of Informational Material up to the earning of Purchase Points, the latter option reserved for Silver and Gold level customers.
The collaboration with Aquaroche
One of the novelties of this year is certainly the commercial collaboration that Sicce has established with the French company Aquaroche, represented here by the owner Jérôme Levassor.
Jérôme’s presence at the Sicce Open House effectively made this partnership official, which made the Cittadella-based company ensure exclusive distribution for the Italian territory of Aquaroche products.
Aquaroche is a company founded in 1979, based in Glénic, a small town in central France. The original line of aquarium decorations dates back to 1987 when, after an initial period of study, it put the first ceramic rocks on the market. 1987 marks the year of the first participation in Interzoo, in which Aquaroche has always taken part to exhibit its products, until the last edition where we were also able to visit them (link to the article).
Aquaroche rocks have been on the market since before most of the artificial rocks still on the market today, and it is safe to say that it was the first company to introduce their use in modern aquariology.
The product is a ceramic rock with very high porosity, similar in structure to live rock, and fully adjustable to create any type of rockface you can think of.
Small ornamental rock
This type of rock is mainly used in freshwater aquariums. These small rocks are marketed in 10 different shapes and are well suited for composing aquascaping in small tanks, where space is limited.
Typologies for seawater
This type of rock is specific for reef aquariums. It can be found in packs of 2, 5, 17 and 23 kg, with various shapes and types. Normally these formations can be joined together, side by side or placed on top of each other. Finally, their special shape allows them to support the other types of rocks, which are flat in shape.
Flat rock
The particular flat shape of these rocks allows them to be placed on the modules we saw just above. In fact, they can be embedded within the modules, forming plateaus on which to place the various corals. They do not require gluing and can be easily repositioned by moving them from one point of the module to another. You can see, therefore, how versatile and easy they can be to assemble to make particularly intricate layouts.
The beauty of this rock is the possibility of making beautiful aquascaping that also has excellent water recirculation. In fact, there will not be clusters of rock in specific places, but we can arrange the flat rock on different levels letting the water flow freely all around our composition.
Live Rock Function
With this designation, Aquaroche identifies its brand of ceramic rock, created and developed specifically for the marine aquarium. If you were to purchase Aquaroche for your new reef, make sure that the box has this brand name on it. It in fact certifies the high porosity of the ceramics from which they are made, speaking of the live rocks and beyond.
Make your rock
There are so many rock models available in the catalog, just take a look at the homepage at this link. However if that is not enough and you would like to create your own custom rock Aquaroche comes to your aid.
You will just need to send a draft of how the rock should look, with the measurements of the tank, the position of the pumps, any areas to be covered or masked, and Aquaroche will give you a quote by sending it directly to your trusted retailer.
In short, I would say that Aquaroche really presents itself with the right credentials in front of those unfamiliar with its products, with a really interesting customer service and a possibly unlimited level of customization.
Aquavitro goes online
On the sidelines of the day, we also learned that the entire Aquavitro brand, which was previously sold only through physical stores, is finally going online and will be available for remote sale. As a reminder, Aquavitro is Seachem‘s brand of excellence, offering carefully selected and centered products. Products researched and formulated with the utmost care, which until now were reserved for a professional use and unobtainable in the online market.
New Juwel aquariums
Juwel should also have been present at the event, precisely because the new Juwel aquariums were launched: the Rio 125, Rio 180, Rio 240, Lido 120 and Lido 200 models with a new gray color scheme.
The lottery
At the end of the day Sicce organised a lottery among the participants of the event. The prize pool was made of three prizes consisting of products whose distributor in Italy is Sicce. We naturally appreciated this initiative that gave fantastic gadgets to three lucky winners.
Lady luck smiled at DaniReef too: with one of the lucky numbers we won the second prize!!!
Conclusions
An event like this was certainly long-awaited.
Sicce was considerate of the retailers’ needings and was able to organize and handle a captivating and complete event, with many interesting discussion points, just like a perfect host.
It was able to engage the present public bringing the witness of competent operators in the market, of international fame, that outlined the situation overseas and gave us some tips to reconnect the great public with this hobby. It managed to entertain us with knowledge and courtesy, making us believe firmly in the route first taken by the company some time ago.
Obviously it was a marketing event, and that’s how it should be considered, luckily it was very well received by the public, with participation and interest.
From these events the aquarium industry only stands to gain from:
- The production companies, because they sponsor their products and attract sellers with novelties, even outside of the trade fair events;
- The retailers, because they earn trust from their suppliers and maybe can benefit advantageous conditions of purchase;
- All the end users.
If your trustworthy dealer improves its competence and sensibility, this will also be to your advantage and his too, it will provide him better support to solve problems that will inevitably appear over time.
