With their stage at Martin Berasategui right around the corner (tomorrow!), Marco Bahena and Cameron Rolka made their first visit to the Sammic factory in Azkoitia, Basque Country. Sammic is a company that produces food service equipment, such as immersion blenders, vacuum sealers, food processors, and dozens of other items. Sammic is also one of the sponsors of the BasqueStage program.
We met with some of the employees of Sammic and took a tour around the factory, to see how they make the machines that the stages will use in Martín Berasategui.
Particularly impressive was watching the molten metal be poured into molds for the custom-made kitchen machines that come out of Sammic. Then the pieces are polished, checked, and moved off to the assembly line. It was impressive to see the product go from raw metal to finished machine over the course of an hour-long tour.
We are in the middle of the 50th anniversary celebration for Sammic, and the halls were lined with photos from the old factory. Our guide pointed out decades-old pictures of some of his colleagues, who still work in the factory to this day!
Marco and Cameron, however, are most excited to get their hands dirty in the kitchen. After a week of free time, exploring the French and Spanish Basque Country and eating at some fine restaurants, they are ready to give those Sammic machines a spin in the kitchen. Good luck, stages!