①
Cutting, beamhouse and liming, fleshing and splitting
This is the first processing stage, in which the hides that arrive salted from the slaughterhouses are divided into shoulder, flank and butt and undergo the first operations: they are soaked, that is brought back to the condition of a freshly flayed hide, then limed and unhaired to remove the hair and epidermis and relax the tissues so they can absorb the tanning agents. They are then fleshed to remove residues of meat and fat and split to the thickness required for the article to be produced.
②
Deliming, bating, pickling and tanning
These are the subsequent operations in which the dermis is relaxed and the pH adjusted to a value suited to the tanning phase. Tanning is carried out to preserve the dermal substance from degradation processes and to give it resistance both mechanically and to humidity and temperature. The tanning agents can be either vegetable (tannins from plants) or mineral (chromium, aluminium, etc.).
③
Shaving, sorting, retanning, dyeing, fat-liquoring
After tanning, the hides are pressed in a system of rotating cylinders, split or shaved to give a uniform thickness across the whole hide and prepare it for the next stages. The hides are sorted to determine quality. Retanning fills the hides with further tanning agent, after which they are dyed to give the required colour and fat-liquored to give the leather softness, water repellency and better mechanical properties.
④
Drying, staking, sorting
Drying is carried out with mechanical operations (setting out, flattening, vacuum) and then by air-hanging on forced-circulation chains. The leather is then softened with the Palissone, a machine that stretches it, making it uniformly more supple. At this point the leathers (known in the trade as "in crust") are ready to be selected again according to quantity, thickness and the specifics required by the customer.
⑤
Finishing and parameter control
Finishing enhances the appearance of the leather as well as protecting its surface: numerous mechanical and chemical operations improve the look of the leather. Anilines, polymeric resins, caseins, waxes, pigments and dyes are applied to the grain to impart the desired colour precisely, cover defects and give shine and feel. The resistance tests agreed with the customer are also carried out.
⑥
Sorting, measuring and packing
Sorting is the final stage in which the hides are checked again for quality as well as thickness and shape. They are graded in the way agreed with the customer, then measured and packed for shipping.
Technology and machinery 
