Editing IBM (section)

===IBM Italy===
In 1927, IBM begins business in Italy as Società Internazionale Macchine Commerciali (SIMC), its first customer being the Ministry of Transport. As times goes by, additional branch offices are opened in Milan, Rome, Venice, Florence, Naples, Palermo, Bologna, Brescia, Trieste, Verona, Cagliari, Padua, Bari, Ancona, Bolzano, Catania, Cremona, Novara, Vicenza and Sassari.

In 1934, construction of a manufacturing plant is begun in Milan. The first product assembled there is the IBM 080 Horizontal Sorter in 1935. It would later produce the IBM 601 Multiplier (1936) and other assorted industrial and data processing machines.

In 1939, the italian branch of IBM is renamed Watson Italiana S.A. Nazionale Macchine Aziendali. In 1947, it is again renamed as IBM Italia.

In 1965 the Milan plant produces its first IBM System/360 Model 20 and IBM announces plans to construct a second plant in Vimercate with 1,200 employees. The new plant begins operating in 1966, replacing the original Milan manufacturing facility.

In 1975 IBM Italia moves its headquarters to Segrate, a Milan suburb, where it remains to this day. Three years later, IBM announces that a new manufacturing facility will be constructed in the south of the country. In 1981, operations begin at the new manufacturing facility in Santa Palomba, near Rome. By now the Vimercate plant covers an area of 110,000 square meters and employs 3,000 people.

[[File:IBM_5291_2_bottom-mfglabel.jpg|thumb|right|Manufacturing label of an IBM 5291 Model 2 Display Station sold in Spain.]]

In 1983, the Vimercate plant on 71 acres produces small systems such as the System/23, System/38, System/6 and Series/1), point of sale systems (IBM 5260), the IBM 7350 Image Processing System, terminals (IBM 5251 Display Station, IBM 5152 Dual Display Station, IBM 5291 and 5292 Display Stations), circuit packaging and assembles, and disk files. In the meantime, the Santa Palomba plant on 260 acres manufactures point of sales systems (IBM 3650 and IBM 3680), the Displaywriter system, terminal printers (IBM 3287, IBM 3715, and IBM 5256), small systems (System/34 and IBM 5280 Distributed Data System), the System/36, the IBM 5520 Administrative System, and key entry units (IBM 3741 Data Station and IBM 3742 Dual Station). Santa Palomba goes on to become one of the main international manufacturing centers for IBM's midrange systems, such as the AS/400 and eServer iSeries.

In 1990, IBM forms IBM SEMEA (South Europe-Middle East-Africa), which assumes responsibly for the company's operations in Italy and 40 other countries. In 1997, IBM SEMEA becomes IBM Italia, responsible for IBM's operations in Portugal, Greece, Turkey, Israel and South Africa.