Our story begins in 1978, in a garage, where a small electrical installation company, which also supplied electronics and software for industrial automation, started its business.

Thus, GRAF was founded on 14 March 1994, from this initial core business.

In the following years through increasingly close and strategic consultancy and supply activities, links were strengthened with companies in various engineering sectors, from automotive to ceramics, from energy to pharmaceuticals, from steel to food, from logistics to distribution and paper mills.

So GRAF began to transform itself into a multi-business reality, where the hallmark of diversification of activities proved to be strategic in maintaining high levels of business and employment.

At the same time, GRAF’s research and development activities were strengthened and an R&D laboratory was set up, which in 2002 obtained the important recognition of highly qualified laboratory from MIUR, the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research, thus enabling customers commissioning research work from GRAF to obtain significant advantages in the technical and scientific quality areas.

The financial crisis of 2008 hit the national manufacturing fabric really hard, and due to the shrinking market the GRAF Board found itself in the difficult position of having to choose between a dramatic cut in personnel or further investments. The decision that was taken was the latter, that is to protect the workforce and employees, and in 2009 GRAF Synergy was born, transforming GRAF from a supplier to a CNC machines manufacturer.

The turning point of 2012: GRAF is the first to introduce a hitherto unknown technology to the market, which will revolutionise the production process of PVC windows: it manufactures the world’s first and only CNC welding machine which completely eliminates the weld seam from the window corner. This intuition gave rise to the V-Perfect patent, the revolutionary technology that makes it possible to produce windows with a never-before-seen aesthetic effect, and enables window and door manufacturers to produce new types of windows with combinations of materials that until then had been considered impossible to achieve at low cost.

In a matter of a few years the new technology proved to be a real disruptive innovation and today GRAF is the world’s leading player in the field of PVC windows.

At the same time, GRAF begins to manufacture all the components necessary for CNG fuel dispensers. Thanks to the experience in the field and the commitment of in-house researchers, GRAF produces the most complete product range and becomes one of the best performing players in the industry.

New investments in research and development have also led GRAF to engage in the fields of liquid methane (LNG) and biogas, as well as technical gas treatment technology, and hydrogen for the automotive sector: a young market, but one that will see future developments of certain interest, in which GRAF intends to be present and a key player.

We come to the present day, where, on the one hand the construction of a photovoltaic system with a capacity of almost 2 megawatts on the roof of GRAF’s large factory in San Giovanni in Persiceto, equipped with energy saving optimisation and thermal storage, and on the other hand the new test cells for compressors and technical gases, mark GRAF’s reinforcement towards zero impact production of the energy required for its production processes!

Thus, GRAF marks its role as the parent company of a group of companies active in various fields. GRAF Industries was born in 2021:

6 BUSINESS UNITS, including 2 manufacturing Business Units:

GRAF SYNERGY: world leader in the production of CNC machines for PVC processing, in particular machines and lines for the production of PVC window frames. The patented V-Perfect technology of Synergy machines is the first and only one in the world to produce PVC windows of perfect quality and aesthetics, without the classic welding burrs.

GRAF GASTECH: one of the leading manufacturers of components for CNG stations, among the first in Europe for the production of roadside filling stations, with a wide range of compressors for CNG, industrial gases, LNG liquefaction systems, compressors and filling stations for hydrogen for automotive use.

And 4 Business Units dedicated to both internal services and to the market and also to the external customers:

GRAF ENTERPRISE is the Group’s software house that designs and develops applications to improve and simplify business processes and maintenance, at any industrial level.

GRAF ELETTRA handles maintenance and expansion of the Group’s production units and for external customers: switchboard wiring, machine board, plant maintenance, photovoltaics and renewable energy, from electrical substations to home automation.

GRAF AUTOMATION is dedicated to the development of electronic components and software for the operation of machinery manufactured by the Group and for the external market.

GRAF INVENTA is the R&D laboratory of GRAF INDUSTRIES, the MIUR-recognised ideas incubator out of which new solutions, processes and products are developed both for the Group and external customers.

In 2008 GRAF was a company with a turnover of less than 10 million. Today the turnover exceeds 100 million and is growing steadily year after year, with the aim of increasingly being a driving force in the local economy, in synergy with its partners.

In order to meet the needs of a market that has become increasingly broader and more international over the years, GRAF’s employment growth to date has exceeded 350 employees, 98% of whom have permanent contracts, not counting the numerous companies involved in the allied industries.

Hand in hand with the growth of markets and personnel, work spaces have also progressively increased, to the point where we now have more than 42,000 square meters of covered production area, plus 3000 square meters of offices, research and development laboratories, mainly divided between the provinces of Modena and Bologna, but also abroad, with a subsidiary in Canada, which new headquarters in Ontario will be inaugurated on April, 18^th and a representative office in Uzbekistan.

Innovation and growth need to be fueled by equally solid skills. The GRAF Group is very active in collaboration with schools and universities, with the aim of bridging the gap between the technical and scientific preparation of young people and the real needs of the world of work. We are already present in middle schools, where we organize robotics workshops with the aim of school orientation for the choice of high schools. We continue with high schools and post-diploma training schools, where in addition to funding in-depth workshops on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects and hosting numerous young people on internships, we have also created a format, the ‘GRAF Ideas Contest’, which pits teams from various technical institutes in the provinces of Modena, Bologna and Verona against each other. Lastly, we are also active with the universities, thanks to a network of collaborations and workshops to give undergraduates and recent graduates the opportunity to learn more about technological innovation, follow high-level projects and for those who wish to join us.

Looking into the future, the commitment is to continue with the company’s development at the people and business level, while maintaining strong link with the local area that has always inspired GRAF to support the local community also through financial and resource support to local voluntary and public assistance associations. We also want to maintain and strengthen the hallmark of business diversification in the future, as a key to success in balancing unforeseen events and fluctuations in the markets in which we operate.

GRAF’s pride on its 30th anniversary year is to have turned difficulties into great opportunities throughout its history, to have become an ever-evolving player ready to seize opportunities and challenges today, to have stood by its employees during the most critical years, to have maintained strong ties with its territory. Way ahead GRAF Industries!