History / 80 YEARS WORTH OF GLASS.
Vitrealspecchi was set up in 1939 by a family of industrial glass processors active since the beginning of the century. The site they chose was in what was already the most productive “industrial district” in the country, that of furniture making.
History / 1939-1960 LEADING MIRROR MAKERS
For the first 20 years the business concentrated on mirrors (hence the name of the company) and was one of the first firms in Italy to install an automated production line for large sized plate glass mirrors. It was a short lived “first”: the glass factories also invested in large scale mirror production plant, but most significantly, the style of furnishing in Italian homes was changing with the economic boom: classic items of furniture with profiled mirrors gave way to more modern designs with only wood. The know-how needed to create one-off pieces with glass was no longer called for.
History / 1965 THE FIRST INDUSTRIALLY PRODUCED SATIN-FINISH GLASS
To survive this crisis, Vitrealspecchi abandoned mirrors for a project that was to have developments unthinkable at the time: an industrial scale version of an old glass working technique, chemical etching. In 1965 it patented the first process for satin-finishing and other etching operations on float glass plates. It was a little big revolution for the building and furnishing industries: satin-finish glass, with its beauty, practicality and , competitive cost, has completely replaced the traditionally sandblasted product.
History / 1968 THE MADRAS® BRAND WAS BORN
1968 saw the launch of the Madras® brand, which still signatures Vitrealspecchi’s production. The ripple effect produced by chemical corrosion in fact recalls a particular style of Indian silk and its lustrous look. The first and for many years the most important application was glass doors.
History / ALWAYS, AVANT-GARDE TECHNOLOGIES THAT RESPECT THE ENVIRONMENT
Vitrealspecchi immediately installed plant for treating the process residues that chemical etching involves and were early adopters of what was avant-garde technology at the time: respect for the environment underpins the value of its products.
History / 1990-2019 RESEARCH AND CREATIVITY OPEN UP NEW HORIZONS
The ’90s marked the start of an important new phase for Vitrealspecchi: the research and development of potential new uses of Madras® glass for applications hitherto unthought of, no longer just doors but shower boxes, flooring, stairs, furnishing, façades… Meanwhile, the company expanded its sphere of operation to global.
Today, the home you live in, the office you work in, the high-tech stores or trend-setting fashion boutiques you shop in, even the external cladding of these buildings… are likely to be graced by Vitrealspecchi’s icon product, Madras®. 80 years after its creation.
Today, the home you live in, the office you work in, the high-tech stores or trend-setting fashion boutiques you shop in, even the external cladding of these buildings… are likely to be graced by Vitrealspecchi’s icon product, Madras®. 80 years after its creation.
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