SL4 FF No. 1, the world’s first V-Perfect welder!

Interview with Lazzaro Simoncini, owner of INFISTIL

It is an honour and a great satisfaction to say that the world’s first seamless welder, the SL4 FF No. 1, was purchased by us at Infistil in 2013.

At the time, a GRAF agent proposed the new welding machine to us, believing that we were the right company with the technical expertise to use it while it was still a prototype in the final stages of development.

Since November 2012, we have been involved in the final stages of refining the prototype, on which the first welds were made. The windows produced at that time are still installed and operational at some of our clients’ sites! We take great pride in this.

The reason we decided to invest in this cutting-edge technology, which has never been tried by anyone else, is that our company has always been a pioneer in seeking new technologies for growth in the fittings sector, innovating to develop new products, open new markets, and enhance the final quality.

I do not hide our concern at the time about making such a leap, because when you choose to use a new, revolutionary technology that has never been tried before, there is a real risk of making misjudgments. In this case, such misjudgments could have compromised the durability of our product, our windows, and consequently undermined the good name and success of our company.

Infistil was founded in 1967, and in the 1980s we were among the first in Italy to transform PVC as extruders, so we are quite well-known in the Italian market. When the news broke that we were the first in the world to use GRAF’s groundbreaking seamless technology, our competitors joined together in a chorus of skepticism regarding our choice. I also vividly remember the attempts to dissuade potential customers by creating and spreading doubts about the reliability of the welds made with the new technology.

However, it soon became clear to everyone that we were able to demonstrate exactly the opposite: the windows were more than solid, and the aesthetic appeal of the product was unmatched. Simply unreachable.

Until that point, PVC had been relegated to the role of the ‘poor cousin’, primarily used for its economic advantages due to its limited aesthetic qualities. The V-Perfect technology, along with other innovations, has literally revolutionised the world of PVC, transforming it into a product with an appealing design and allowing it to rightfully enter a market that was previously dominated by wood and aluminium.

Unfortunately, we no longer have the “legendary” FF No. 1. We had to part with it due to the evolution of our business, which recently led us to replace it with an FF EVO, the next model from GRAF Synergy. The No. 1 has been sold to another company that continues to use it at full capacity, just like we did. With a quick calculation, I can say that to date, that machine must have completed at least 140,000 to 150,000 welding cycles!

After 11 years of V-Perfect welding, I can say that while I was initially hesitant about making that bold choice, today the results have proven me right, and I am even more convinced of my decision.

And the story continues… the second part will be online soon.

In the photo, Lazzaro Simoncini